Flights to Ethiopia's Tigray suspended as clashes erupt

Local farmers walk next to a tank of alledged Eritrean army that is abandoned along the road in Dansa, southwest of Mekele in Tigray region, Ethiopia, on June 20, 2021. [AFP]

Clashes between federal and Tigrayan forces have erupted in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region, prompting the suspension of flights, security and diplomatic sources told AFP on Thursday.

The renewed tensions risk a return to conflict in the volatile region, which three years ago emerged from a brutal war between Ethiopian forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) that the African Union says killed at least 600,000 people.