Fighting erupts along border of Ethiopia's northern Tigray region- residents, Tigray forces spokesman

Fighting between forces from Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray and central government forces has erupted around the town of Kobo, residents and the spokesman for the Tigrayan forces said on Wednesday, ending a months-long ceasefire.

 

"I am hearing sound of heavy weapons starting from this morning," a farmer in the Kobo area who did not wish to be named told Reuters. "Last week, I saw Amhara special forces and Fano (volunteer militia) heading to the front by bus."

 

A second resident said he also heard heavy weapons and confirmed that in the past two days there had been major movement of Fano militia and special forces from the neighbouring Amhara region to the area.

 

According to Reuters, Ethiopian government spokesman Legesse Tulu, military spokesman Colonel Getnet Adane and the prime minister's spokeswoman Billene Seyoum did not respond to requests for comment.

 

Tigrai Television, a media outlet controlled by the Tigray state, reported on Wednesday "the Ethiopian forces along with Amhara special forces and Amhara militias started a large-scale attack around 5:00 a.m(11 a.m local time)."

The fighting marks the end of a ceasefire observed since March and is comes as a major blow to attempts to start peace talks between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front, the party that controls Tigray.

The fighting has displaced millions of people, pushed parts of Tigray into famine and killed thousands of civilians.

 

The government said earlier this month it wanted talks "with no preconditions", while Tigray's government has called for the restoration of services to civilians first.

Tigray has been without banking and telephone services since the military pulled out at the end of June. Imports of fuel are restricted, limiting the distribution of aid.

           

     Key events in the war in northern Ethiopia

A nearly two-year-long war in northern Ethiopia has killed thousands of civilians, left millions of people needing food aid and displaced millions more. Here are some of the main events in the conflict.

 

Nov. 4, 2020 - Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sends troops into the northern region of Tigray, accusing its governing party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), of mounting surprise attacks against military bases in the area.

 

The TPLF, which dominated national politics until Abiy took office in 2018, says it seized military equipment and took thousands of soldiers prisoner because Abiy was preparing to send troops into the region after it held a vote in September in defiance of federal government orders.

 

In the subsequent days, Eritrean soldiers and forces from the neighbouring Ethiopian region of Amhara mobilise to reinforce Ethiopian troops.

 

Nov. 9, 2020 - The first of two rounds of ethnic killings begins in the town of Mai Kadra, claiming hundreds of lives. Initially Amhara civilians say they are attacked by Tigrayan militiamen. Then Tigrayan civilians say they are attacked by Amhara militiamen. Tens of thousands of Tigrayans begin to flee from Western Tigray into Sudan.

Nov. 14, 2020 - The TPLF fires rockets at two Amhara airports and at the Eritrean capital Asmara, accusing Eritrea of sending soldiers into Tigray.

 

Nov. 28, 2020 - Abiy tells parliament that operations in Tigray are over and soldiers control the Tigrayan capital Mekelle.

 

Nov. 28-29, 2020 - Eritrean troops kill hundreds of people in the town of Axum, Amnesty International says, describing it as a potential crime against humanity.

 

February-March 2021 - Tens of thousands of civilians move east, deeper into Tigray, as they flee Western Tigray, whose fertile fields are also claimed by Amhara.

 

March 16, 2022 - World's worst health crisis is in Ethiopia, says WHO Director-General.

March 23, 2021 - Abiy confirms for the first time that Eritrean troops entered Tigray, after months of denials from both nations.

 

April 2021 - A regional official says Eritrean soldiers are holding Tigrayan women as sex slaves amid a wave of reported gang rapes. Eritrea denies the accusation.

 

June 11, 2021 - The United Nations says 350,000 Tigrayans are experiencing famine with millions more at risk; the U.N. aid chief accuses Ethiopia of using food as a weapon of war. Ethiopia denies blocking aid.

 

June 29, 2021 - Tigrayan forces take control of Mekelle, after months of battles in the surrounding countryside. Ethiopian and Eritrean troops withdraw from most of Tigray except Western Tigray.

 

July 13, 2021 - Tigrayan forces thrust south and west into land claimed by the neighbouring Amhara region.

 

July 19, 2021 - Tigrayan forces push east to attack the neighbouring Afar region, towards a road and railway linking the capital of landlocked Ethiopia to Djibouti's port.

 

Sept. 29, 2021 - Only a trickle of food aid reaches Tigray. The United Nations accuses the government of a de facto blockade, which it denies.

 

Oct. 11, 2021 - Ethiopia launches a ground offensive to push Tigrayan forces out of Amhara and Afar. The next week, Ethiopia restarts air strikes in Tigray.

October 18, 2021 - Ethiopia's air force conducted an air strike on Mekelle, capital of the country's Tigray region on Monday, targeting communications infrastructure, the state-run Ethiopian Press Agency said late in the day.

Earlier in the day, Ethiopia’s government has denied the attack. 

 

Nov. 2, 2021 - Ethiopia declares a six-month state of emergency after Tigrayan forces gain territory and say they are considering marching on the capital Addis Ababa.

 

December 2021 - Ethiopia's military recaptures the town of Lalibela, famed for its rock churches, from Tigrayan forces. It is the latest in a string of towns Ethiopia's military says it has retaken.

 

Jan 8, 2022 - Aid workers tell Reuters that an air strike in Tigray killed 56 people and injured 30 in a camp for displaced people. The government does not respond to a Reuters request for comment at the time, but has denied targeting civilians.

 

Feb 15, 2022 - Ethiopia's parliament votes for an early end to a six-month state of emergency.

 

March 24, 2022 - Ethiopia's government declares an immediate, unilateral truce to allow aid into Tigray. Tigrayan forces later say they will respect a ceasefire if sufficient aid is delivered to their region "within reasonable time".

 

April 1, 2022 - Twenty trucks carrying food aid enter territory controlled by Tigrayan forces, the first time aid enters Tigray by road since mid-December. The initial trickle of aid increases over the next month.

 

June 14, 2022 - The federal government forms a committee to negotiate with Tigrayan forces, a public step towards peace talks.

 

June 28, 2021 - At least 64 people were killed and 180 were injured in an air strike on a market in Ethiopia's war-torn northern Tigray region, a local health officer said, as the army denied targeting civilians.

Aug. 20, 2022 - The World Food Programme says almost half the population of Tigray is in "severe" need of food. Aid groups struggle to distribute supplies because the government restricts the amount of fuel that can enter Tirade.

 

Aug. 24, 2022 - Fighting between Tigrayan forces and government forces erupts around the town of Kobo, ending a months-long ceasefire.