Rebel Forces Leave Tigray's Capital, and Federal Troops Enter

There is a particular poignancy in a withdrawal that is meant to spare a city from destruction—a retreat that is not a defeat so much as a gesture, however imperfect, toward the protection of civilians. In Ethiopia's northern Tigray region, the Tigray People's Liberation Front has announced that its forces have pulled back from Mekelle, the regional capital they seized last month, as federal troops and their allies advanced toward the city. The TPLF said the decision was made because of concerns about risks to civilians, echoing a similar withdrawal during the previous war .

The situation in Mekelle remains uncertain. Two residents told the BBC that pro-government forces now control the city and that TPLF forces have abandoned it. Mobile phone services appeared to have resumed in parts of the city . But severe disruptions to internet and cellphone networks have made verifying information difficult. A local business owner told the Associated Press that civilians had looted government offices and hauled away equipment from police headquarters as TPLF-allied fighters withdrew. Small groups of fighters from the Tigray Peace Force—a force comprising former members of the TPLF's armed wing, now fighting alongside federal troops—entered the city, and celebratory gunfire was heard overnight .

The fighting that led to this moment erupted in recent weeks between the TPLF and federal government forces, alongside allied fighters in Tigray, Afar, and Amhara regions. The TPLF seized the Mekelle airport on September 23, prompting Ethiopian Airlines to suspend flights to Mekelle and the Tigrayan cities of Axum and Shire . The renewed conflict threatens the 2022 Pretoria Agreement, the African Union-brokered peace deal that ended a devastating two-year civil war in which an estimated 600,000 people died, driving the region to the precipice of famine .

The conflict has also tested regional alliances. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea and Egypt of supporting the TPLF, allegations both countries deny. On Friday, Ethiopia severed diplomatic relations with Eritrea, and Eritrea retaliated by cutting ties. Egypt denied supporting the rebels, and Eritrea said Ethiopia is trying to externalize an internal conflict . The United Nations has warned that the deteriorating security situation is severely disrupting humanitarian work and has called on all sides to guarantee safe and unhindered access to people in need .

The TPLF's withdrawal from Mekelle marks a major shift in the conflict, but it does not resolve it. The TPLF remains part of a seven-party alliance formed last month with the stated objective of removing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed from power . The fighting continues in other parts of Tigray and neighboring regions. And for the residents of Mekelle, who have already endured one war and are now watching another unfold, the future remains as uncertain as it was before the TPLF pulled back—perhaps more so, now that the city has changed hands once again.

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Sources: BBC, AP News, TRT Afrika