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The Ethiopian National Defence Force said in a statement that government forces had launched a counter-offensive inflicting heavy personnel and equipment losses on the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. The army put the toll at 272 fighters killed and 260 wounded during the action in Amhara region. This marked the first official comment from the military on the fresh outbreak of fighting according to reports from AFP and the BBC.
ACLED’s conflict alert released on September 24 documented continued armed clashes along the Tigray-Afar border and within Amhara. Data from the organisation showed joint Tigray Defense Forces and Amhara Fano National Movement units battling Ethiopian National Defense Forces Tigray Peace Forces Amhara Riot Police and local militia in several woredas. The monitoring group recorded the seizure of airports in Mekelle Aksum and Shire by Tigrayan forces on the preceding day.
The Tigray regional government issued a statement asserting that federal forces had initiated intensive bombardments with aircraft drones and artillery prompting their defensive response. TPLF vice president Amanuel Assefa told AFP it was the beginning of war with no possibility of de-escalation at present. Getachew Reda an adviser to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accused the TPLF leadership of launching an all-out offensive against positions in Afar and Amhara in a post on social media.
The European Union urged immediate de-escalation amid the worsening security situation as reported by RFI on September 24. International concern focused on the potential for the conflict to spread further and involve Eritrea. Humanitarian sources described artillery exchanges and rebel advances into towns such as Abala and Yallo in Afar.
ACLED analysis from August noted that initial clashes near the Sudan border in Shererina involved heavy artillery and drones with the ENDF regaining control of the area. Subsequent months saw troop buildups and targeted strikes particularly around Mekelle and southern Tigray. The current escalation follows the TPLF’s formation of a seven-group alliance against the federal government earlier in September.
Tensions escalated after the TPLF reinstated its pre-2020 regional government in May and began mobilisation efforts including forced conscription according to multiple reports from the New York Times and Al Jazeera. The Pretoria peace agreement of 2022 that halted the prior war which the African Union estimated killed around 600000 people has come under increasing strain from unresolved territorial and displacement issues. Observers from the African Union and European Union have called for dialogue to avert a repeat of past widespread devastation.
