Ethioian Forces Retake Tigray Capital Mekelle

Ethiopian Forces Retake Tigray Capital Mekelle as Tensions With Eritrea Escalate ETHIOPIA Ethiopian federal forces and allied fighters recaptured the capital of the northern region of Tigray on Saturday after the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew from the city, marking a major shift in renewed fighting that has shattered a 2022 peace deal and raised fears of a wider regional conflict. The TPLF said Saturday that it had “temporarily moved out” of Mekelle to operate elsewhere, hours after federal forces and pro-government fighters retook the city’s main airport. The Tigray Peace Force, a pro-government militia, said its fighters entered central Mekelle on Saturday afternoon, followed by the Ethiopian military. A humanitarian source and a resident also said government forces controlled the city. The latest fighting erupted on Sept. 23 after the TPLF and six other armed and political groups formed an alliance aimed at removing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government and establishing an inclusive transitional administration. The renewed hostilities effectively collapsed the 2022 peace deal that ended two years of war between federal forces and the TPLF. That conflict began in November 2020 after relations between Abiy’s government and the TPLF deteriorated. Federal troops – backed by Eritrea and allied militias – fought Tigrayan forces in a war that killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced millions and largely cut Tigray off from the outside world. The recent fighting has already disrupted communications, banking and other services in Mekelle and severely hampered humanitarian operations across northern Ethiopia. It has also heightened fears that the conflict could draw in neighboring countries: Ethiopia has accused Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt of backing the opposition coalition. Sudan and Egypt denied involvement, while Eritrea also rejected allegations that its forces were fighting in Tigray. Relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea have deteriorated sharply since the countries fought together against the TPLF in 2020-2022, particularly over Ethiopia’s push for direct access to the Red Sea. On Thursday, Ethiopia closed its embassy in Asmara and ordered 10 Eritrean diplomats to leave within 48 hours. Eritrea responded by severing diplomatic relations. Ethiopia also expelled an Egyptian diplomat, prompting Cairo to order an Ethiopian official to leave. The United States on Saturday urged Ethiopia and Eritrea to exercise “maximum restraint,” while the African Union called for diplomacy and warned against further regional destabilization.