Ethiopian government forces have entered Adigrat, a city in northern Tigray close to the Eritrean border, after rebel fighters withdrew, according to residents and reporting from the region. The advance comes as relations between Ethiopia and neighbouring Eritrea have sharply deteriorated, with the two countries cutting diplomatic ties last week.
Residents said on Saturday that federal troops and allied militia had moved into the city. This followed reports in recent days that Eritrean troops had been pushed back from, or had withdrawn from, positions near the strategically important town. Adigrat had previously been controlled by the rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). Ethiopia's government accuses Eritrea of backing the group, while Eritrea denies this.
The military gains follow a rapid shift in the conflict. The TPLF launched attacks on federal forces last month and seized the regional capital, Mekelle, and its airport on September 23. Federal forces recaptured Mekelle on October 3, and rebel fighters and their leaders left the city. On Sunday, passengers arrived at Mekelle airport for the first time in almost three weeks as flights resumed; unconfirmed reports suggest around five a day. Getachew Reda, a former Tigray leader who now advises Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, promised "visible change" in the region when he was greeted by supporters at the airport, though he gave no details.
The diplomatic confrontation has escalated alongside the fighting. Addis Ababa accused Asmara of launching an "all-out invasion", saying Eritrean troops had advanced up to 60 kilometres into Tigray. Eritrea denies any incursion and says the claim is a pretext for a war of aggression. On Saturday, Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh wrote to the United Nations asking it to take "deterrent measures", warning that conflict would cause huge devastation for both peoples and destabilise the wider region.
Civilians in Adigrat describe a worsening humanitarian situation. Resident Hagos Woldegebriel said children and the elderly were going hungry and sick people were dying for lack of treatment. Teame Lemlem, who was previously displaced from Zalambessa, said banks were closed and food supplies were running out, adding that peace would bring great hope.
The stakes are high because of the region's recent history. Tigray's 2020–2022 war, in which Eritrean forces fought alongside Ethiopian government troops, caused about half a million civilian deaths from violence, famine and the collapse of health services, according to researchers at Ghent University in Belgium. The 2022 peace agreement that ended it is now undermined by renewed fighting. Eritrea won independence from Ethiopia in 1993 and the two fought a border war from 1998 to 2000. Ties improved after Abiy took office in 2018 but have soured again, partly over landlocked Ethiopia's insistence that it has a right to sea access, which Eritrea sees as a threat to its port of Assab. The TPLF also joined six other opposition groups last month in an alliance seeking to oust Abiy, adding to fears of a wider conflict.