Ethiopia captures Tigray capital as its regional rivals meet in Egypt

The capture of Mekelle, capital of Tigray, deals a major blow to the opposition alliance that rules the northern region.

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which leads the alliance, said in a statement posted on Facebook it had retreated from the capital and that the regional government would be "temporarily moved out of Mekelle and operate from somewhere else".

The TPLF launched a fresh offensive against the federal government last month, drawing counterattacks and sparking fears of a return to the devastating civil war of 2020-2022.

As concerns grow that the violence could spread beyond Ethiopia's borders, the presidents of Egypt, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea were set to meet in the Egyptian city of Alamein on Sunday to discuss the conflict.

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of directly backing the Tigray rebels, with the support of Sudan and Egypt, which all three countries deny.

Rebels flee

A source close to a pro-government militia, the Tigray Peace Forces, told Reuters its fighters entered the centre of Mekelle on Saturday afternoon, followed by the Ethiopian military. 

Federal troops were patrolling Mekelle and manning key institutions on Sunday, a local journalist told French news agency AFP, as communications were restored for the first time in more than a week.

"We have taken control of Mekelle and we are marching forward," a commander with a pro-government militia said.

Businesses and shops remained closed, with owners moving stock to safer locations ahead of time, fearing looting and vandalism.

"There are no police. Last night, we had to organise ourselves and take care of security," one resident told AFP.

A local business owner, Filmon Equar Hailu, told the Associated Press civilians looted government offices and hauled away equipment from police headquarters as rebel fighters withdrew.

He said he heard celebratory gunfire overnight into Sunday morning as small groups of pro-government fighters entered the city.

Renewed fighting in Tigray raises risk of a wider regional war

Egypt talks

The TPLF has long been the dominant force in Tigray, ousting a government-appointed administration earlier this year. It was also the dominant group in a coalition that ruled Ethiopia between 1991 and 2018.

Since it launched its campaign against the federal government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on 23 September, a counteroffensive has seen Ethiopian forces push deep into rebel-held territory.

Analysts say the fighting threatens to escalate into a wider regional conflict.

Sunday's mini-summit in Alamein – taking place on the sidelines of an African Business Forum – was set to bring together Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Sudanese Armed Forces head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

Before the talks, Sisi urged "dialogue, not confrontation".

Ethiopia's new rebel war redraws alliances across the Horn of Africa

Eritrea, which shares a long border with the Tigray region, is most directly involved in the conflict.

It accuses landlocked Ethiopia of planning to invade and seize access to its coastline. Analysts say it has backed the rebels in Ethiopia in a bid to keep the conflict away from its border.

The African Union has urged restraint, warning that renewed tensions threaten the 2022 peace agreement that ended the previous hostilities in Tigray. 

The TPLF's war with the federal government killed some 600,000 people between 2020 and 2022, according to AU estimates.

The TPLF also pulled out of Mekelle during that conflict, apparently to spare the city from destruction. 

The rebels' leader Debretsion Gebremichael implied this week that the group would continue guerrilla-style attacks, as they did last time Mekelle fell. "We operate under a strategy to strike the enemy wherever we choose," he said.

(with newswires)