Civilian Casualties as Ethiopian Forces Advance into Tigray

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Civilians, including children, were killed and dozens more were injured due to shelling that hit towns in the Tigray region, as Ethiopian government forces advanced towards the region's capital, Mekelle, according to health workers and residents who spoke to AFP on Tuesday.

These developments come after fierce battles erupted last week between the federal government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front, raising fears of Ethiopia slipping into a new war, less than four years after the Pretoria agreement that ended a bloody conflict between the two sides.

According to AFP, battles are taking place on several fronts, while government forces are advancing northward into Tigray towards Mekelle.

On Monday, government-aligned forces announced the capture of the strategic town of Alamata in southern Tigray, while residents reported that the town of Maichou, located to the north, was subjected to heavy shelling.

A senior health official at Aydar Hospital, the largest medical facility in Mekele, stated that the hospital received 44 civilians in critical condition, including 33 children, who were injured in shelling that targeted Mai Tschu and Alamata between Saturday and Monday.

He added that some of the injured lost their sight, while others suffered amputations, noting that at least four people died while being transported from the two towns to the hospital.

AFP was unable to independently verify the casualty figures due to restrictions on media coverage and widespread disruptions in communication services.

One resident of Mai Tschu, who was accompanying his injured sister, said that the town was shelled six times, and that one of the strikes hit a residential area, killing two people he knew.

In Alamata, another person reported that the market area was heavily shelled on Saturday, resulting in civilian casualties. The man was accompanying his five-year-old sister after she was injured.

The previous war between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front ended with a peace agreement signed in Pretoria in 2022, after a conflict that lasted two years and resulted in the deaths of at least 600,000 people, according to estimates from the African Union reported by AFP.

However, the agreement has not been fully implemented, and tensions have escalated since late 2025, with the government launching drone strikes in Tigray and amassing troops on the region's borders, while the Tigray People's Liberation Front ousted the administration appointed by the government.

On September 23, the front took control of airports in Tigray that were under federal police control, and also launched attacks in the neighboring Amhara and Afar regions with the participation of local militias.

A humanitarian source in Afar confirmed to AFP that rebel forces took control of the town of Eribti, before the town was later bombed by government forces, amid reports of civilian casualties whose numbers have not been determined.

Thus, the confrontation enters a more dangerous phase, with the fighting expanding and approaching Mekelle, while the announced civilian casualty toll remains unverifiable due to the difficulty of accessing the conflict areas.