Ethiopia’s federal army has retaken the main airport serving Mekelle, the capital of Tigray, dealing a blow to the opposition alliance fighting government forces.
According to Reuters, the airport’s recapture gives federal troops control of a key facility about 10 kilometres from the city centre. Opposition forces had seized it alongside two other airports in the region when fighting began on September 23.
The clashes pit an alliance led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) against the federal government and its allies. They mark the most serious escalation since Ethiopia’s 2020–2022 civil war.
Reuters, relying on local sources, reported that said some Tigrayan Defence Force fighters had left their positions and returned home.
Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, recently expressed support for the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF).
In a post on X, Gen Kainerugaba said the Uganda People’s Defence Forces stood with the Ethiopian army. He also urged an immediate end to the fighting and respect for the Pretoria Peace Agreement, which ended the earlier war.
“Ethiopia’s unity and sovereignty must be respected and protected by all,” he wrote.
In another post, he praised the Ethiopian army under Field Marshal Birhanu Jula and predicted a swift victory.
“ENDF under my brother Field Marshal Birhanu Jula is one of the strongest armies in Africa. The war will be short and all the adversaries will be defeated badly,” he wrote.
However, analysts cited by Reuters warned that even the capture of Mekelle would be unlikely to end the conflict. Control of the airport does not establish that federal troops have taken the entire city.
During the previous war, government forces captured Mekelle within the first month of fighting in 2020. The TPLF retook the city seven months later.
