Ethiopian gov’t-aligned group claims close to full control of Tigray region

Claim comes as violence flares across northern Ethiopia, provoking diplomatic spats amid a deteriorating humanitarian situation for millions.

An armed group aligned with the Ethiopian government has said it is close to gaining full control of the conflict-stricken northern Tigray region.

The commander of the Tigray Peace Forces (TPF) declared on social media late on Thursday that Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) forces had been wiped out.

The claim, which could not be immediately verified by Al Jazeera, came after fighting resumed between Ethiopian federal forces – including the TPF – and an opposition alliance led by the TPLF in September.

Residents told the Reuters news agency on Friday that Ethiopian ⁠government forces were closing on the region’s capital Mekelle.

TPLF chairperson Debretsion Gebremichael acknowledged on Thursday that federal forces had occupied some ⁠parts of the region but said his forces would counter-attack “in due course”.

Pro-government forces have made quick advances into Tigray since fighting erupted last week. The return of the hostilities follows the apparent collapse of a 2022 peace deal that ended the war between the federal government and forces from the Tigray region.

Seven armed and political groups announced an alliance on September 20 aimed at removing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration and establishing an inclusive transitional government.

The African Union reported last month that Tigrayan forces had seized airports in Mekelle, Axum and Shire and detained federal personnel, disrupting civilian air services.

Fighting has also spread from southern Tigray to the neighbouring Amhara and Afar regions.

The remarks from the commander of the Tigray Peace Forces “shed light on a new phase of this conflict,” reported Al Jazeera Arabic Ethiopia Bureau Chief Mohammed Taha Tawakel.

The federal army is clearly providing full support to the TPF, yet the original TPLF still holds several towns, he said, but maintains a strong link with Eritrea along more than 800 kilometres of frontier.

“That raises the prospect of the conflict increasingly becoming an internal struggle among Tigrayans themselves,” Tawakel noted.

Ethiopian military officials have accused Eritrea, Egypt and Sudan of supporting the Tigrayan-led fighting alliance. That has led to tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Egypt.

The African Union has called for “maximum restraint” between the three countries and for them to “refrain from actions or statements that could further escalate tensions and undermine regional peace”.

Eritrea and Egypt have denied accusations that they are backing efforts to destabilise Ethiopia.

Meanwhile, the conflict is provoking a worsening humanitarian situation in Tigray.

”The region is home to between six and seven million people, living amid electricity cuts, internet blackouts and a total lack of communications,” Tawakel said.

Some civilians, fearing the fighting could move into major urban centres, have already begun fleeing to Amhara and Afar, he reported.

Aid agencies, including the United Nations, have managed to relocate some operations to newly secured areas, he added, in an effort to maintain a minimum level of humanitarian access.