NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopian federal forces have retaken the airport in Mekelle, the capital of the northern Tigray region, according to people in the city who spoke to The Associated Press on Saturday, reversing a takeover by Tigrayan fighters that prompted the suspension of commercial flights last month.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the federal forces recaptured Alula Aba Nega Airport. Those who provided the information declined to be identified for fear of retribution amid uncertainty over who controlled the city.
Severe disruptions to internet and cellphone networks have made gathering and verifying information from Tigray difficult. Details of how the airport changed hands, including whether fighting took place there, remained unclear.
Neither the Ethiopian government nor the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, had commented on the airport’s reported capture. It wasn’t clear who controlled Mekelle itself. An AP contributor in the city said that residents feared looting amid the uncertainty.
TPLF fighters seized the airport on Sept. 23, prompting Ethiopian Airlines to suspend flights to Mekelle and the Tigrayan cities of Axum and Shire. The African Union urged restraint, warning that renewed tensions threatened the peace agreement signed in 2022.
Federal troops are fighting alongside allied Tigrayan forces against the TPLF. The AP previously reported that the Tigray Peace Force, a breakaway faction of the Tigrayan rebels, was operating alongside federal forces in the neighboring Afar region.
The reported change in control follows a sharp deterioration in relations between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea. Ethiopia on Thursday ordered 10 Eritrean diplomats to leave and announced the closure of its embassy in Eritrea. Eritrea said that it would sever diplomatic ties.
Ethiopian authorities have accused Eritrea of supporting the TPLF, an allegation Eritrea has denied.
The fighting has brought renewed hardship to civilians still recovering from the previous 2020-2022 war. Residents of Mekelle told the AP earlier this week that communications, banking and other essential services had been disrupted.
In September, residents described fears of renewed isolation following the suspension of flights. They also reported that roads connecting Tigray and Afar had been closed to civilian traffic, although the AP couldn’t independently verify the closures.
The renewed hostilities have undermined the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement that ended two years of war between federal forces and the TPLF. Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopia’s military during that conflict.
The TPLF has since joined six other opposition groups in an alliance seeking to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. The extent of their military coordination remains unclear.
Ethiopian federal forces retake Mekelle airport from Tigrayan fighters, residents say 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-10-03 17:37:40
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
