Ethiopia–Tigray Conflict Escalates as Army Claims 272 Fighters Killed

Ethiopia’s military says it has killed at least 272 fighters from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) during a counter-offensive in the northwestern Amhara region.

The Ethiopian National Defence Force said on Thursday that another 260 Tigrayan fighters were wounded, while several others were captured.

According to the army, government forces launched the counter-offensive after TPLF fighters and their allies attacked several areas of North Wollo, a region of Amhara bordering Tigray.

The latest escalation comes days after the TPLF and six other armed groups announced the formation of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival, which says it aims to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government.

TPLF Vice President Amanuel Assefa told AFP that Ethiopia was now in a “full-blown war”, confirming that Tigrayan forces were fighting alongside local armed groups in Amhara and Afar.

The fighting has also disrupted air travel, with Tigrayan forces reportedly seizing three local airports. Flights to Lalibela, a UNESCO-listed site famous for its medieval rock-hewn churches, were suspended amid reports of fighting in the area.

The TPLF previously fought the Ethiopian federal government from 2020 to 2022 in a devastating conflict that ended with a peace agreement.

The renewed violence is also being linked to wider tensions in the Horn of Africa, including Ethiopia’s deteriorating relationship with Eritrea and the ongoing war in neighbouring Sudan.

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