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Saturday, 3 October 2026dailybeirut.com
World
TPLF fighters and leaders withdrew from Mekelle on Saturday amid advancing Ethiopian federal troops, according to local reports and allied groups.
Militants and commanders of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) evacuated the regional capital, Mekelle, on Saturday. This withdrawal coincided with the advance of forces loyal to Ethiopia's federal authorities toward the city, as reported by Agence France-Presse.
A local journalist cited by AFP stated that TPLF fighters and leaders were "leaving Mekelle." The reporter added that government offices and police stations had been emptied of security personnel.
The Tigray Peace Forces, an alliance aligned with the Ethiopian federal government, announced it had regained control of the main airport in the northern region's capital. In a post on the X platform, the group declared: "We have imposed full control over Mekelle Alula Aba Nega Airport. We are currently sweeping through the city of Mekelle."
Reuters could not immediately verify the claims made by the armed group. The office of the Ethiopian Prime Minister did not respond to Reuters' request for comment at the time of reporting.
Years-long tensions between the federal government and the TPLF erupted into open conflict last Wednesday. The escalation followed attacks launched by the front that extended into the Afar and Amhara regions in northern Ethiopia.
Fighting in Tigray and neighboring Amhara and Afar has led to the collapse of the Pretoria peace agreement. Signed four years ago, this accord ended a war that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
The Ethiopian civil war took place between 2020 and 2022. It stemmed from the breakdown of relations between the TPLF—an armed movement that later became a political party dominating the Ethiopian scene for nearly three decades—and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. Abiy assumed office in 2018, ending the TPLF's dominance over the country's political landscape.
Over the past few months, the TPLF and the federal government exchanged accusations of violating the November 2022 peace agreement.
Three days before launching its offensive, the TPLF announced the formation of a new alliance with six other armed groups across Ethiopia. The stated objective of this coalition is to overthrow the government of Abiy Ahmed.
