The Ethiopian government army is advancing to Mekelle, the capital of Tigray. Local authorities in that troubled region refused to surrender on Wednesday. “Tigray is now hell to his enemies. The people of Tigray will never kneel.”
The Ethiopian government announced on Wednesday that the army is on its way to the regional capital Mekelle. They also stated that the Tigray “junta” has dismantled bridges on the roads leading to that city.
The authorities there deny this and accuse the Ethiopian authorities of “genocide”. They only say they want to restore order in the area to protect national unity.
There has been heavy fighting in Tigray for weeks, resulting in hundreds – possibly thousands – of deaths. At least 30,000 people fled the violence and crossed the border to neighboring Sudan.
Information from the area is scarce, which makes it difficult to estimate how the battle is going. Journalists are not allowed to enter the area.
Tigray was politically dominant until 2018
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered air strikes on November 4 and sent troops to Tigray because he believed the local leaders, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), had revolted.
Abiy’s move, the youngest leader in Africa at 44, led to international consternation. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 because of a peace agreement with Eritrea.
The TPLF played a leading role in the politics of the 110 million inhabitants of Ethiopia between 1991 and 2018. That came to an end after the political rise of Abiy, who focused on reforming the economy and the authoritarian Ethiopian regime.
The party says it has now been sidetracked by the government of their former ally.
Risk of involvement of more countries is lurking
Observers fear that other countries could also become involved in the armed conflict. For example, troops from the insurgent region have targeted targets in neighboring Eritrea, accusing them of deploying tanks against them.
The Ethiopian government army is one of the strongest in Africa, but many high-ranking officers and experienced troops are from Tigray and a lot of heavy military equipment is stationed there. The region was the front line in the 1998-2000 war with Eritrea and the 20 years of military stalemate that followed.
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