Renewed Ethiopia fighting revives questions over Tigray peace deal
Ethiopia’s army chief alleges foreign backing for armed groups as clashes with Tigrayan rebels resume. Reports from Afar and Mekelle point to fresh civilian and communications risks.
Heavy clashes between Ethiopia’s federal forces and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) reportedly resumed on Wednesday, renewing fears of a return to the 2020–2022 war. Ethiopia’s army chief, Field Marshal Birhanu Jula, accused Eritrea and Sudan of backing armed groups, and also named Egypt and other external powers. The allegations have not been independently confirmed in the reporting.
The TPLF said it was fighting a defensive war and claimed to have seized airports. The report also describes attacks in Afar and Amhara, but provides no independent confirmation of the airport claim.
A humanitarian source said rebels captured Erebti, in Afar, on Sunday after heavy artillery fire. The source estimated that at least 150,000 people had been displaced in the region, while cautioning that the figure could not be precise.
In Mekelle, a journalist told AFP that a drone strike damaged the Tigrai TV building on Sunday. Another journalist said the station was off-air; no casualties were immediately reported, and the channel had not commented. Phone and internet services in Tigray were also reported disrupted from Friday.
The renewed fighting follows the 2022 Pretoria Peace Agreement, which ended the previous war but was not fully implemented, according to France 24. The report says about one million people remained unable to return home as sporadic clashes and federal drone strikes resumed in recent months.
