Ethiopian armed forces attack the capital of Tigray

Ethiopian armed forces attack the capital of Tigray

In the Ethiopian conflict, the country’s armed forces attacked the regional capital of Tigray, according to a regional media report. Mekelle “is being bombarded with heavy artillery,” Tigray TV, affiliated with the regional government, said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the office created by the central government for the Tigray crisis said that the TPLF had always fabricated accusations that the central government was attacking cities, towns and places of civilians from the air. The armed forces would only target TPLF military targets and weapons depots; they would not attack civilian facilities such as schools or residential areas and would have prevented explosions in densely populated areas.

On Friday, a senior member of the military, Hassen Ibrahim, told state broadcaster Fana that the military had captured several strategically important locations outside of Mekelles.

More than three weeks ago, the Ethiopian government launched an offensive against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which is in power in the northern region of Tigray. Little is known about the local situation, as the Internet, telephone connections and electricity are largely cut off. So far, according to UNHCR, more than 43,000 people have fled to neighboring Sudan and aid organizations are warning of a humanitarian catastrophe in Tigray. Various voices in the international community have called for a ceasefire, including recently the EU Parliament.

The background to the conflict is growing tensions between Tigray and the central government. The TPLF ruled Ethiopia for more than 25 years until Abiy came to power in 2018 and overthrew the TPLF. Many people in Tigray feel that they are not represented by the central government and demand more autonomy. In the multi-ethnic state of Ethiopia, with around 112 million inhabitants, there are a number of ethnic tensions that have increased during the rule of Abiy. (sda / dpa)