Tigray forces launch offensive against Ethiopian government

Tigrayan rebels have seized control of airports in the Tigray region in northern Ethiopia and launched an offensive against federal forces in the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions, according to officials.

Getachew Reda, an adviser to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, said the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) has “launched an all-out offensive against government positions in Afar and Amhara” early on Wednesday.

In a post on X, Getachew said the TPLF have “taken over federally controlled airports in Tigray leading to the suspension of flights to and from Tigray”.

“The TPLF politico-military leadership has obviously taken irresponsibility to new heights,” he added.

The Tigray regional government, however, said it was countering an “invasion” by federal forces.

In a statement posted on Facebook, it accused federal troops of “intensive bombardments” on Tuesday involving “aircraft, drones, and artillery”.

“The Tigray army has been instructed to counter the attack and genocidal invasion launched against us, and has entered into a defensive battle,” the statement added.

The TPLF ruled Ethiopia from 1991 to 2018 before being sidelined after Abiy took office, triggering a devastating civil war from 2020 to 2022. The conflict killed about 600,000 people, according to estimates by the African Union, before the Pretoria Peace Agreement ended hostilities.

Clashes in Afar and Amhara

On Wednesday, clashes were under way in various parts of Afar, including the towns of Abala and Erebti, the AFP news agency reported, citing humanitarian workers in the region. In Amhara, federal forces were firing heavy weapons from a camp in the town of Lalibela, the Reuters news agency reported, citing two residents.

The offensive came after the TPLF announced on Sunday that it had allied with six other armed groups across Ethiopia to overthrow Abiy’s government.

Reuters, citing government and diplomatic sources, reported that Tigrayan forces were fighting alongside the Fano militia in Amhara.

Fano is a member of the new alliance with the TPLF.

It had sided with the federal government during the 2020-2022 war, but rose up against it in 2023 in an ongoing armed conflict that has resulted in thousands of deaths.

Abiy’s spokesperson, Billene Seyoum, told Reuters that members of the alliance had been collaborating for a while with the financial backing of Ethiopia’s neighbour and historic adversary Eritrea.

Eritrea has repeatedly denied similar accusations.

At the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Ethiopian President Taye Atske-Selassie Amde said his country had exercised “immense restraint” and made progress with its neighbours despite foreign interference.

“Our message to forces of destruction and mayhem is loud and clear. We urge them to respect the sacred right of the people of the Horn ⁠of Africa to live in peace and prosperity,” he said.

Analysts warned that the renewed hostilities could destabilise the region, which has still not recovered from the previous war. About one million people remain displaced in the region.

Alan Boswell, Horn of Africa director at the International Crisis Group, said allegations of Eritrea’s backing of the TPLF could trigger a regional conflict.

“Eritrea is also quite close, for instance, with the Sudanese army, and relations between Ethiopia and the Sudanese army have also been deteriorating,” Boswell said, adding that Ethiopia is also getting more involved in the civil war in Sudan, at least along its border.

“So this is all becoming one big regional mess, and it could get very, very ugly if we don’t see de-escalation.”