Ethiopian Forces Reportedly Retake Mekelle Airport Amid Tigray Fighting

Ethiopian government troops and pro-government forces have reportedly retaken Alula Aba Nega Airport in Mekelle as fighting with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and allied groups continues across northern Ethiopia.

The reported recapture, attributed by Reuters to a source familiar with developments in Mekelle and a humanitarian source, was also confirmed by a resident of the city. The airport lies about 10 kilometres east of Mekelle’s centre and was among three regional airfields seized by rebel forces when the latest fighting began on September 23.

Government forces advance

Mohammed Taha Tawakel, Al Jazeera’s bureau chief in Ethiopia, reported that federal forces had made significant gains in Tigray, taken several towns and moved closer to Mekelle after more than a week of intense combat.

The Tigray Peace Force, an armed group aligned with Ethiopia’s federal government, said it had captured Alamata, a town near Tigray’s southern border with Amhara. Alamata is also described as a supply hub for troops, fuel and food.

Fighting has been reported across Tigray, Amhara and Afar. An offensive in Afar could threaten supply routes from Djibouti, through which most of Ethiopia’s imports, including fuel, pass.

A local journalist told AFP that TPLF fighters and leaders were leaving Mekelle, although the report was not independently verified. Residents also expressed concern about possible looting and insecurity in the city.

Competing casualty accounts

The Ethiopian military said about 270 Tigrayan fighters had been killed and more than 200 wounded in North Wollo. Those figures have not been independently verified.

At least 52 civilians have reportedly been killed in fighting in northern Ethiopia. Doctors Without Borders said there had been a surge in wounded people in the region during the previous week.

Amnesty International said it had received credible reports of civilian objects being destroyed by shelling and air strikes, as well as intensified forced conscription and other actions that could amount to violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.

Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, urged the African Union Peace and Security Council to convene an emergency session on Ethiopia. He said the body should act before civilian casualties increase further and called for the activation of its response mechanisms.

Regional tensions

The renewed fighting has undermined the Pretoria Agreement, the peace deal signed in November 2022 between Ethiopia’s federal government and the TPLF.

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of supporting armed groups opposed to the federal government. Eritrea rejected the allegation and denied involvement in the war. Its Ministry of Foreign Affairs nevertheless announced that Eritrea was severing diplomatic relations with Ethiopia, saying it had “no option but to reciprocate in kind and sever all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia.”

Ethiopia and Eritrea restored relations in 2018 after more than 20 years of tensions, but relations deteriorated again after Ethiopia made its accusations.

Laura Hammond, a professor of development studies at SOAS University of London, warned that the conflict could draw in neighbouring countries. She said the risk of regional spillover was already visible in alleged Eritrean support for the TPLF and its allies, and that Eritrea could become more involved if the conflict continued.

Hammond also cautioned that the fighting could worsen relations with and inside Sudan. The conflict comes amid wider instability affecting Sudan, Somalia and areas around the Red Sea.

The source material also reported an explosion at Ethiopia’s Ministry of Defence in Addis Ababa early on a Thursday, but provided no details about its cause, casualties or responsibility.