Ethiopia accuses Sudan, Eritrea of backing Tigray forces as fighting escalates

Ethiopian army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula on Sunday accused Sudan, Egypt and Eritrea of supporting forces battling federal troops, amid an offensive by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) beyond its northern stronghold.

Sudan's armed forces dismissed the accusations as “baseless”, saying Khartoum remained committed to international law and good relations with its neighbours.

The exchange comes as tensions rise between Ethiopia's federal government and the Tigray authorities, four years after a peace agreement brought an end to a devastating civil war.

Heavy fighting between the TPLF and federal forces resumed last week, with Tigrayan fighters pushing into the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions.

A humanitarian source told reporters that the town of Erebti in Afar had fallen to Tigrayan forces on Sunday following heavy artillery fire, with fighters advancing towards Afdeera, around 100 kilometres farther east.

At least 150,000 people are estimated to have been displaced in Afar, although communications difficulties have made precise figures difficult to establish.

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Renewed regional tensions

Birhanu said Ethiopia was confronting armed groups that had organised with the backing of foreign powers.

He accused Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt of providing support and supplies, although he presented no public evidence for the claims. Egypt and Eritrea have not publicly responded.

The accusations reflect a broader deterioration in relations between Ethiopia and several of its neighbours.

Sudan has itself repeatedly accused Ethiopia of assisting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been fighting the Sudanese army since April 2023.

Khartoum has also alleged that drones used in attacks inside Sudan have operated from Ethiopian territory with support from the United Arab Emirates. Both Ethiopia and the UAE have denied those accusations.

Ethiopia, meanwhile, accused Sudan in May of supporting TPLF-linked fighters – a claim Khartoum denied.

Relations between Addis Ababa and Eritrea have also worsened sharply. Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopian federal forces against the TPLF during the 2020-2022 war, but relations deteriorated after the peace agreement signed in Pretoria.

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Fears of renewed humanitarian crisis

The latest fighting has revived memories of that conflict, which killed an estimated 600,000 people according to African Union estimates and was marked by widespread abuses, including sexual violence.

The 2022 Pretoria agreement ended large-scale hostilities but was never fully implemented, leaving around one million people unable to return to their homes.

Communications in Tigray have again been heavily disrupted, prompting fears among residents of a return to the isolation experienced during the previous conflict, when electricity, banking services and much humanitarian assistance were cut off.

The headquarters of Tigrai TV in the regional capital Mekelle was also struck by a drone on Sunday. Images showed damage to the building, while journalists said the station had gone off air. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over the renewed fighting, including reports of drone use and harm to civilians.

The TPLF, which dominated Ethiopian politics from 1991 until Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018, has recently joined six other armed groups in a new opposition alliance.

Its latest offensive into Afar also threatens routes linking landlocked Ethiopia with Djibouti, through which the vast majority of the country's international trade – including fuel supplies – passes.

(with newswires)