TPLF forces advance in Afar, 150,000 people may have been displaced — Euronews
In Ethiopia’s northern Afar region, forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) have captured the town of Erebti and are advancing toward Afdera, according to a humanitarian source. The source estimates that at least 150,000 people may have been displaced by the fighting in Afar alone, although it is currently impossible to establish the exact number, Euronews reports.
Erebti, located near the border with Tigray, came under TPLF control after intense artillery shelling, the humanitarian source said. Afdera is about 100 kilometres from the town. A new escalation of fighting between the TPLF and Ethiopia’s federal government has continued since Wednesday.
Threat to the Djibouti corridor
The TPLF has also carried out attacks on the neighbouring regions of Afar and Amhara, saying it is waging a defensive war against the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The group seeks to disrupt supplies from Djibouti: nearly all of Ethiopia’s international cargo traffic, including fuel supplies, passes through this route.
Jalale Getachew Birru, ACLED’s senior analyst for East Africa, said the federal authorities still view the renewed fighting as a manageable challenge, as the trade and logistics corridor through Djibouti remains open. At the same time, in her assessment, the TPLF offensive in Afar could change the situation if it threatens the Semera–Djibouti route.
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Telephone and internet services in Tigray have been significantly disrupted since Friday. On Sunday, a drone struck the headquarters of Tigrai TV in Mekelle, which is considered the main media outlet of the region’s rebel authorities.
Accusations against neighbours
Ethiopian army commander Field Marshal Birhanu Jula accused Egypt, Eritrea and Sudan of supporting armed groups fighting government forces in the north of the country. Sudan’s military rejected the accusations as unfounded and stated its commitment to international law and the principles of good neighbourliness.
The TPLF joined the Ethiopian Peoples’ Survival Alliance along with six other armed groups. The alliance says it seeks to remove Abiy Ahmed’s government and form a transitional administration. It includes, among others, the Amhara Fano militias and the Oromo Liberation Army.
UN Secretary-General spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the organisation is particularly concerned by reports of drone use and harm to civilians. The African Union called on the parties to exercise maximum restraint, immediately cease actions that could heighten tensions, and resume negotiations under the Pretoria Agreement.
