Journalists and residents report that TPLF fighters are abandoning Mekelle as federal troops and allied militias press northward and seize the nearby Alula Aba Nega Airport. The fighting, which expanded on September 23 into Afar and Amhara regions, has revived fears of a wider return to the 2020–2022 civil war. Diplomatic relations with Eritrea and Egypt have deteriorated amid reciprocal expulsions. Analysts say the government has launched a three-axis counter-offensive toward Mekelle.
TPLF Fighters Reportedly Leave Mekelle As Government Forces Advance, Airport Seized
The buidling of the Tigray TV broadcaster was hit by a drone strike on Sunday as violence flared (-)
Journalists and residents told AFP on Saturday that fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) were abandoning Mekelle, the regional capital in northern Ethiopia, as federal troops and allied militias advanced toward the city.
Clashes began on September 23 when the TPLF launched attacks into neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions, raising fears of a return to the destructive civil war that devastated parts of the country between 2020 and 2022. Federal forces and pro-government militias have pushed the insurgents back and advanced northward toward Mekelle.
A pro-government Tigrayan militia said it had seized Mekelle's Alula Aba Nega Airport on Friday, a facility roughly 10 kilometres (6 miles) outside the city. So far, AFP reporters said federal forces had not been seen inside Mekelle itself, and many government offices and police stations were reportedly left without security personnel.
"TPLF militants and leaders are leaving Mekelle," a local journalist told AFP.
Residents expressed deep concern about the security vacuum. "I am concerned that government and public property could be exposed to looting because there are no security forces in the city," one resident told AFP. Another said, "I am worried that lawlessness could spread in the city, and I am also afraid for my life. I want us to quickly return to law and order."
Diplomatic Fallout
The fighting has strained Ethiopia's relations with neighbouring Eritrea and with Egypt, both of which Addis Ababa accuses of supporting the rebels. Ethiopia expelled 10 Eritrean diplomats and closed its embassy in Asmara on Thursday; Eritrea responded by saying it would "sever all diplomatic ties." Ethiopia also expelled an Egyptian diplomat without explanation, a move met by a reciprocal action from Cairo.
TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael said in a video released late Thursday that "the war is regional and it is a war to control the Red Sea," framing the conflict in wider regional terms.
Counter-Offensive
Analysts at the Critical Threats Project, part of the American Enterprise Institute, said the government launched a counter-offensive into Tigrayan territory along three axes toward Mekelle. The TPLF initially had made gains in Afar and Amhara alongside local militias, but humanitarian and military sources reported those advances were rolled back this week. A humanitarian source, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the TPLF had been pushed out of Afar.
This remains a fluid and dangerous situation with limited independent verification in some areas. Reports cited here come from local journalists, residents, pro-government militia statements, AFP sources and the Critical Threats Project.
Help us improve.
