Fragile Tigray Ceasefire Hit Again: Behind the Ethiopian Federal Army's Retaking of Mekelle, a Legacy of 500,000 Deaths and the Shadow of Eritrea
Ethiopian Airlines resumed flights to Mekelle, the capital of Tigray, but the ceasefire signed in 2022 has effectively become a dead letter just weeks after federal forces recaptured the city. Researchers at Belgium's Ghent University estimated that around 500,000 civilians died in the previous civil war. The TPLF has allied with six opposition groups to seek the ouster of the Abiy government, and rising tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea have fueled fears of a broader conflict.
According to Africanews, Ethiopian Airlines on Sunday resumed flights between the capital Addis Ababa and Mekelle, the capital of Tigray. This route had been suspended for nearly three weeks after the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) seized the city and its airport on September 23; flights to Axum and Shire were also suspended over the same period.
On October 3, Ethiopian federal forces recaptured Mekelle, with rebel fighters and their leaders withdrawing from the city. Upon arriving at the airport, Getachew Reda, a former Tigray leader who serves as an adviser to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, told supporters gathered to welcome him: "I would like to take this opportunity to assure you that we will bring real change, a kind of change that goes beyond mere hope." He did not elaborate further.
However, the resumption of flights conceals a crisis far from over. The new round of fighting in Tigray has torn up the peace agreement that ended the devastating civil war in 2022. Researchers at Belgium's Ghent University estimated that the two-year civil war had caused approximately 500,000 civilian deaths from violence, famine and the collapse of the healthcare system. A humanitarian toll of this magnitude has long lingered on the margins of international attention.
Political confrontation has intensified in parallel. Last month, the TPLF formed an alliance with six other opposition organizations, explicitly seeking to overthrow the Abiy government, escalating the Tigray conflict from a regional standoff into a full-blown challenge to the federal regime. Tensions between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea continue to mount, and concerns over a further expansion of the conflict are accumulating.
The peace agreement once had international endorsement, but when it was openly torn up and fighting resumed, the substantive response of mediation mechanisms remained weak. Unconfirmed reports indicate that Mekelle airport handles around five flights per day, a figure that could be increased depending on demand, but this has not been officially confirmed.
No comments yet. Start the discussion.