Ethiopia’s federal government and authorities in the northern Tigray region have accused each other of launching military offensives, raising fears of a return to full-scale conflict nearly four years after the Tigray war ended.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s adviser, Getachew Reda, said Tigrayan forces had seized control of federally administered airports in Tigray and launched attacks in the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions.
Tigrayan authorities, however, said their forces had been forced into a defensive war following reported drone strikes in the region.
Residents in Tigray’s capital, Mekelle, say local forces took control of the city’s airport from federal police on Wednesday, which made Ethiopian Airlines subsequently cancelled all flights to Tigray.
The developments follow reports of several drone strikes in Tigray in recent days.
Tigrayan authorities said at least 14 people were killed and 22 others injured in a strike in the southern town of Alamata on Tuesday.
The two-year Tigray conflict ended in November 2022 under an African Union-brokered peace agreement.
The conflict was among the deadliest of the 21st century, with an African Union mediator estimating that about 600,000 people died.
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