News24 | Eritrean troops deployed in Ethiopia's Tigray region

Members of the Ethiopian National Defense Force patrol after Tigray People’s Liberation Front army retreated from the regional capital Mekelle, in the Tigray Region.

Reuters

• Eritrean troops have been deployed in recent days around a town in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, a local official and residents said Wednesday, after around two weeks of internal conflict threatening a wider regional war.
• Tension between Ethopia and Eritrea has been building over the years and recently escalated, resulting in the two countries severing diplomatic ties.
• Eritrea fears that landlocked Ethiopia plans to invade its territory to gain direct access to the Red Sea.

Eritrean forces have moved into the area around a town in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region in recent days, according to a local official and residents who spoke on Wednesday, following roughly two weeks of internal fighting that risks escalating into a broader regional conflict.

Fighting broke out between the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Ethiopian federal forces on 23 September, sparking fears of a return to the devastating civil war of 2020-2022.

Over the weekend, the Ethiopian army and an allied Tigrayan militia entered the regional capital Mekelle, without a fight after the TPLF withdrew.

A commander with the militia told AFP his troops had reached Wukro town, roughly 50km north of the city, and on the main road leading to Eritrea in the north.

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Sources said Eritrean troops were in Adigrat, around 40km by road south of the Eritrean border, with some headed south towards Mekelle.

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of supporting the rebels, a charge Eritrea has denied.

Men ride in a vehicle bearing the Tigray region flag on the streets of Mekelle, in Ethiopia,

Reuters

“There have been Eritrean soldiers in Adigrat for the past four days, the population is very concerned,” a local city official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP.

An eyewitness also reported seeing troops “wearing Eritrean military uniforms” heading south along Adigrat’s main road.

Another eyewitness said “Eritrean troops, loaded onto large trucks, patrol vehicles and other vehicles” were heading towards the town of Idaga Hamus, roughly 20km south of the city.

“They are passing through, carrying heavy weaponry,” the witness added.

Long-standing tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea have recently escalated with the two neighbouring countries severing diplomatic ties last week.

Eritrea fears that landlocked Ethiopia plans to invade its territory to gain direct access to the Red Sea.