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.

Hostilities broke out in recent days in Tsemlet, western Tigray, an area claimed by forces from the neighbouring Amhara region who have refused to withdraw despite a peace agreement signed in Pretoria at the end of 2022 requiring them to do so.

"The situation appears to be deteriorating," the security source said.

A diplomatic source seeking anonymity told AFP the Tigray forces are facing "the ENDF (Ethiopian army) alongside Amhara militias."

"The clashes were confirmed in recent days, but today we don't know the situation," the source added.

A local source, speaking on condition of anonymity, also confirmed the clashes, while the federal army and members of TPLF are yet to respond to inquiries by AFP.

Two Ethiopian Airlines officials, also speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that flights to Tigray, operated by the state-owned carrier, had been suspended for "operational reasons," without providing further details.

The carrier -- the region's only airline -- did not immediately respond to inquiries from AFP.

The suspension is the first since the 2022 peace agreement that ended the war, which had seen air links, telecommunications, and banking services completely shut down.

A journalist in the Tigrayan capital Mekele told AFP "there is increasing anxiety", but said they do not know the "intensity of fighting so far".

For several months, tension has been brewing in northern Ethiopia as Amhara and Eritrean forces remain present in violation of the peace deal.

Last year, the head of Tigray's interim administration, established by Addis Ababa, was forced to flee Mekele, the regional capital, amid growing divisions within the TPLF.

The TPLF, once in control of all Ethiopia before being displaced by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, remains banned, with Addis Ababa accusing the group of forging ties with neighbouring Eritrea and "actively preparing to wage war against Ethiopia".