Ethiopian forces enter strategic Tigray town of Adwa
Theo Al Jazeera English
Ethiopian government forces have entered the strategic town of Adwa in northwestern Tigray without resistance, days after taking Adigrat from rebel forces. Ethiopian Airlines also resumed flights to Mekelle for the first time since September 23.
Ethiopian government forces have entered the town of Adwa in northwestern Tigray without meeting resistance, just days after seizing the town of Adigrat from rebel forces. On the same day, Ethiopian Airlines resumed flights to Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region.
According to local residents, federal forces and allied militia entered Adwa on Sunday, a day after fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew from the town. Adwa lies about 40km northwest of the border with Eritrea.
TPLF Vice Chairman Amanuel Assefa declined to comment on the developments.
An Adwa resident, who gave only the name Aferwerki, told AFP: "All the shops in town are closed. Last night, many government offices, including Adwa Hospital, were looted."
The conflict monitoring group ACLED said Ethiopian drone strikes targeted a hotel in Adwa on October 4, injuring between five and nine people, including security personnel, who were taken to hospital. Some ACLED sources said TPLF Chairman Debretsion Gebremichael and several other senior officials were present at the hotel, but stressed the information had not been verified.
Another resident, who asked not to be named, confirmed that TPLF forces had withdrawn from Adwa, but said that although government forces had deployed in the town, they had not yet advanced to the centre. "The roads are deserted. People are very afraid of looting," the resident said.
Last week, Ethiopian forces captured Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region, days after the TPLF confirmed it was withdrawing from the city and moving the regional administration "temporarily" elsewhere.
Ethiopian Airlines on Sunday resumed flights from the capital Addis Ababa to Mekelle for the first time since September 23, when an armed coalition of seven groups, including the TPLF, began fighting Ethiopian forces and seized the airport.
On the same day, Getachew Reda, a former Tigray leader now an adviser to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, told supporters who greeted him and Ethiopian intelligence chief Redwan Hussein at Mekelle airport: "On this occasion, I want to assure you that we will bring about clear change, a change far beyond mere hope."
Ethiopia accuses Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt of backing the rebel coalition. Khartoum and Cairo deny any involvement. Eritrea, which fought alongside Ethiopian federal troops in the 2020-2022 war, severed diplomatic relations with Ethiopia over the accusations last week.
