ADDIS ABABA: Eritrean troops have deployed in recent days around a town in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region, a local official and residents said on Wednesday, after two weeks of internal conflict threatening a wider regional war. Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of backing the rebels. Long-standing tensions between the two neighbours deepened last week when they severed diplomatic ties.
The Ethiopian army has successfully pushed back the Tigrayan rebels with the help of local militias and entered the regional capital of Mekelle at the weekend without a fight as the TPLF abandoned the city. Multiple sources said that Eritrean troops were in Adigrat, around 115 kilometres (70 miles) north of Mekelle on the way to the Eritrean border, and were pushing south.
Analysts say Eritrea is keen to prevent the war spilling into its territory should the TPLF be forced to retreat across the border. "The Eritrean army has entered Tigray in uniform, equipped with heavy weaponry," said Gebreigziabher Beyene, commander of the Tigray Peace Force, the pro-government militia that has fought alongside the federal army. "This force is being struck by drones," he said, adding Eritrea was "deliberately deploying its forces so that the fighting takes place inside Tigray rather than spilling into Eritrea". — AFP
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
