Tigray Forces Take Mekelle Airport as Ethiopian Airlines Halts Flights

Tigrayan forces took control of the airport in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, according to local and security sources cited by AFP. Ethiopian Airlines suspended flights to Mekelle, Shire and Axum on Wednesday, 23 September, amid renewed fighting that has raised concern about the country’s 2022 peace agreement.

An employee at Mekelle’s Alula Aba Nega Airport told AFP that staff were instructed to turn back on their way to work after being informed the facility had been taken over. AFP also reported that Tigrayan forces had seized the airport in Shire, while the situation at Axum was initially described as a reported takeover. The African Union Commission said Tigray forces had occupied the airports in all three cities.

The airline said the three routes were suspended because of the situation in Tigray and did not announce a date for flights to resume. Travellers with bookings should check directly with Ethiopian Airlines for the status of individual services.

The fighting has extended beyond the airports. Aid workers told AFP of clashes in neighbouring Afar, while Reuters reported accounts of fighting in Tigray, Afar and Amhara. The full extent of the hostilities and control of individual areas remained difficult to verify independently as reports emerged.

The opposing sides have given conflicting accounts of how the escalation began. Tigray’s regional administration said its forces were responding to federal attacks, an allegation AFP said it could not independently verify. A senior Ethiopian official, meanwhile, accused Tigrayan forces of launching a major offensive, Reuters reported. Neither account establishes who initiated the latest fighting.

The confrontation threatens the agreement signed in Pretoria in November 2022, which ended two years of war between the federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. In its 23 September statement, the African Union Commission said the seizure of civilian airports was inconsistent with commitments under that agreement. Commission chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf called for restraint and direct talks, and asked former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo to engage the parties in an effort to reduce tensions.