Government forces take control of Mekelle as Tigray leaders withdraw
Residents in Mekelle told the BBC that pro-government forces control the city after Tigray’s regional leadership announced a temporary withdrawal. Al Jazeera also reported federal troops and allied fighters entering the regional capital. The shift reaches beyond earlier fighting around the airport. Renewed hostilities threaten communities still recovering from the previous war, while the United Nations warns that insecurity is disrupting humanitarian assistance.
Geopolitics··Night
Residents report a change of control in Mekelle
Two residents of Mekelle told the BBC that pro-government forces now control the capital of Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region and that fighters from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front have left. Al Jazeera also reported the withdrawal and the arrival of federal troops and their allies. The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) is the movement that has been running the region. It described its departure as temporary. The change concerns the regional capital; it does not settle who controls the rest of Tigray.[1], [2]
The TPLF said concern about risks to civilians had prompted its relocation. One resident told the BBC that mobile phone services appeared to have resumed in parts of Mekelle. Fighting in recent weeks has involved the federal army, allied fighters and the TPLF in Tigray and the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions.[1]
The 2022 peace agreement is under renewed strain
Residents have been trying to recover from the two-year civil war that ended in 2022. The African Union brokered the Pretoria Agreement between the federal government and Tigray’s forces to end that conflict. Relations have deteriorated over the past six months, with each side accusing the other of breaking the agreement. Last month, the TPLF joined six other armed movements, including the Fano militia from Amhara, in an alliance seeking to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. That alliance’s declared objective adds a national political dimension to the renewed fighting.[1]
Aid access deteriorates as neighbours exchange accusations
The United Nations warned that insecurity in northern Ethiopia was severely disrupting humanitarian work and urged safe access to people in need. The US State Department called for restraint and dialogue before a Sunday diplomatic meeting in Egypt involving leaders from Ethiopia’s neighbourhood. Ethiopia and Eritrea severed diplomatic relations on Friday after Addis Ababa accused Asmara of supporting the new rebel alliance; Eritrea denied the allegation. Ethiopia also accused Egypt of supporting the rebels and expelled an Egyptian diplomat. Cairo ordered an Ethiopian embassy official to leave in response. Those disputes accompany the fighting while aid organisations face worsening conditions on the ground.[1]
