The leader of Ethiopia’s Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) vowed on Friday to continue fighting federal forces despite losing control of major towns, including the regional capital, Mekelle.
“Tigray will remain a graveyard for its enemies,” TPLF chairman Debretsion Gebremichael said in remarks broadcast by Tigrayan television on Friday, Anadolu Agency reported.
Debretsion said the rebel movement continued military operations against government forces and rejected suggestions that its territorial losses amounted to defeat.
His remarks came after the Ethiopian military captured Mekelle on October 3, following the withdrawal of rebel forces from the city.
He claimed that his fighters had achieved several battlefield successes in recent days and inflicted heavy casualties on federal troops. However, the claims could not be independently verified, and Ethiopian authorities have not confirmed the casualty figures.
Renewed hostilities erupted on September 23, nearly four years after a peace agreement ended a devastating two-year civil war in northern Ethiopia.
Federal forces have since taken control of several strategic towns, while the TPLF has continued to claim attacks against government positions.
Separately, Ethiopia’s military said on Friday that its forces had killed an unspecified number of TPLF fighters and captured four others in the western Benishangul-Gumuz region, near the Sudanese border.
The military said the operation targeted an armed unit known as Army 13, which it accused of seeking to destabilize the region.
Regional broadcaster Benishangul-Gumuz Media TV reported that Ethiopian security officials accused the fighters of operating with foreign backing, including support from Sudan and Eritrea.
The fighting has heightened tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Addis Ababa has accused its northern neighbor of supporting armed groups opposed to the federal government.
Eritrea has denied accusations of destabilizing Ethiopia and expressed concern over Ethiopian statements regarding access to the Red Sea.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has appointed a caretaker administration for Tigray, with regional elections planned within six months. The TPLF has rejected the arrangement.
The renewed violence comes as Tigray continues to recover from the 2020–2022 war, which caused widespread displacement and severe humanitarian suffering.
A drone strike in southern Tigray killed four people this week as they loaded livestock onto a truck, the Addis Standard news outlet reported.
The outlet also reported deadly drone strikes in neighboring Amhara, where government forces are fighting Fano armed groups. According to the report, strikes hit an elementary school on Tuesday, killing at least six children and injuring 20 others.