Fighting in Ethiopia intensifies: What’s the latest?

Ethiopian government forces and allied militia fighters say they have seized a key town in the northern Tigray region, a development that could open the way for a federal push toward the region's capital, Mekelle, according to Aljazeera English.

The Tigray Peace Force, a militia made up of Tigrayan fighters loyal to the federal government, announced on Facebook that it had taken the town of Alamata together with Ethiopia's national army. Footage verified by Reuters showed soldiers moving through the streets carrying Ethiopian flags. Two diplomatic sources confirmed the town's fall to Reuters, while a source connected to opposition fighters said their forces had pulled back.

Alamata lies roughly 120 kilometers, or about 75 miles, south of Mekelle and sits close to the boundary between Tigray and the Amhara region. The town functions as a logistics hub for troops, fuel and supplies, meaning its loss could be a significant blow to Tigrayan forces and could clear a path for federal troops advancing on Mekelle. According to Aljazeera, a source within the military indicated that government units were already moving toward and encircling the Tigrayan capital.

The renewed violence began last week when Tigrayan rebel fighters launched a large-scale offensive, taking control of three airports inside Tigray and pushing into the neighboring Afar and Amhara regions. The Tigray People's Liberation Front, or TPLF, has described its actions as a defensive campaign, claiming federal forces struck first using drones and heavy artillery. Government troops and their partners responded with counterattacks. A drone strike hit the offices of Tigrai TV, a broadcaster widely regarded as central to the rebel administration in Mekelle, on Sunday.

Fighting has spread across several fronts in northern Ethiopia, touching Tigray, Amhara and Afar. Over the weekend, TPLF fighters took the town of Erebti in Afar, an Ethiopian military commander told The Associated Press anonymously. The Tigray Peace Force confirmed Erebti had changed hands but disputed claims that its capture involved heavy combat.

The push into Afar raises concerns for trade routes running from Djibouti, a corridor through which the bulk of Ethiopia's imports, including fuel, travel. Speaking to Aljazeera from Afar, the regional governor alleged that Eritrean troops were involved in the fighting and had taken control of a large majority of the region, and were working to sever the road connecting Djibouti and Eritrea. Aljazeera correspondent Taha Tawakul described the situation as highly volatile, suggesting the federal government might soon intervene alongside Afar's regional administration. Eritrea's government has not responded to the allegation.

Violence has also reached Amhara, particularly the North Wollo area, where Ethiopia's military says around 270 Tigrayan fighters have died and more than 200 have been wounded.

The toll on civilians is mounting quickly. Medical charity Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, reported a sharp rise in casualties across the north. Patient numbers at hospitals in Korem and Alamata jumped from about 180 to more than 420 within two days, and 300 wounded people reportedly reached Suhul Hospital in the past week, per MSF. Communications networks, including internet and phone service, have been cut off in parts of Tigray. Valerie Browning, who co-founded the Afar Pastoralist Development Association, told AP that roughly 150,000 people have fled their homes since fighting resumed.

The conflict centers on tensions between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's administration and the TPLF, the party that governed Ethiopia for close to thirty years before Abiy took office in 2018. War first erupted between the two sides in November 2020 and lasted two years, with African Union mediator and former Nigerian leader Olusegun Obasanjo putting the death toll at around 600,000, though other estimates vary.

Shortly before launching its latest offensive, the TPLF united with six other armed factions, including the Oromo Liberation Army and the Amhara Fano National Movement, to form a new coalition called the Ethiopian Peoples' Forces Alliance for Survival, aimed at ousting Abiy's government and installing a transitional authority.

There are also fears the war could pull in Ethiopia's neighbors. Field Marshal Berhanu Jula, Ethiopia's army chief, has accused Eritrea of backing the opposition and claimed Sudan and Egypt are also offering support. Both Eritrea and Sudan have rejected the accusations. Egypt's foreign ministry spokesperson, Nader Zaki, told Reuters that Cairo's policy rests on respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other nations, while Sudan called the allegations "baseless and unfounded" in a statement on X, saying they had no supporting evidence.