Situation in Tigray (per 03 October)

  • BBC News Tigrigna says Tigray Defense Forces (TDF) have withdrawn from areas of North Wollo Zone of the Amhara regional state.
  • The Tigray Central Command announced in a statement of 2 October that it is pulling its troops out of Amhara areas on its own accord in order to better respond to the “coalition invasion”. This was reportedly done between 30/09 and 02/10.
  • It however stated that should there be further offensives against them on this front they would re-occupy those areas.
  • A statement issued by the Tigray Military Command on 1 October says TDF continues to successfully neutralise the large-scale offensive by allied forces of Ethiopia, Eritrea and Amhara.
  • The statement by the command claims that TDF has killed and wounded over 93,000 combined troops of Ethiopian defence forces, Eritrean forces and Amhara forces in the last 39 days.
  • The military command also stated that over 10,000 soldiers have been captured and a large number of heavy weapons including 3 T-72 tanks, medium and light weapons and military communication radios have been captured.
  • The statement adds that TDF have destroyed a large number of heavy weapons including 16 tanks.
  • Prof. Kindeya Gebrehiwot, Member of the Tigray government, said on Twitter that Eritrean forces have shelled the Irob district over 310 times in the week of the Meskel holiday (20 – 27 September), killing 7 and injuring 26 civilians.
  • Kindeya said Eritrean forces have been intentionally destroying infrastructures including hospitals, schools, water services and vocational training centres in towns of Dewhun and Alitena.
  • According to analyst Rashid Abdi, special envoys from the US, UN and AU are expected to meet in Nairobi to discuss the situation in Tigray.
  • Eastern Africa Regional director for the World Food Programme, Michael Dunford, confirms that they have virtually no access to Tigray, preventing any humanitarian support and impacting 13 million people in north Ethiopia as a whole. 
  • Military observers state that Eritrean troops in the Afar region are getting cut off from their supply routes, indicating they might soon have to live off the land.
  • A survey of potential crop yields in Tigray by the Mekelle University and Ghent University forecasts a 2022 output nearly as low as that of 2021, mainly due to a lack of fertilisers. According to the study, less than 20% of the required fertilizer reached Tigray for the 2022 rainfed cropping season.

Situation in Ethiopia (per 03 October)

  • According to the Ethiopian Banking Association, the Ethiopian government is pressing for banks, insurance brokers and other financial institutions to provide 2% of their profits; according to observers this would serve to directly support the war effort, not reconstruction or aid.
  • According to Ethiopia Map on Twitter, a video of OLA fighters in combat against Ethiopian security forces was recorded in Meta Robi in the West Shewa district of Oromia.
  • The government of the Gambella region has rejected the conclusions of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission report regarding the extrajudicial killing of 50 civilians in Gambella town.

Situation in Eritrea (per 03 October)

  • Asena TV has reported that foreigners are leaving Asmara. The reason for the departures is the fear of flight suspension and cancellations as a cause of the war in the region.
  • Sophia Tesfamariam, Eritrean representative at the UN, appears to have clarified her government’s conditions for a peace agreement in Tigray. She reportedly stated five demands including: disarming the TPLF; equal repartition of aid in Afar, Amhara and Tigray; accountability of the TPLF for crimes alleged against Ethiopia and Eritrea; for the International Community to condemn Tigray for its alleged attacks on Ethiopia and Eritrea; and to not place Ethiopia and Tigray Governments on equal footing.
  • Observers believe that, since the issues called attention to ultimately concern Ethiopia, this might be indicative of Afewerki claiming his authority on internal Ethiopian politics. The Ethiopian government has yet to comment on these conditions.
  • The Eritrean Orthodox Church, the Canonical Archdiocese of North America, Europe and Middle East condemns the ongoing war on Tigray and declares a 7-day fasting and prayers from October 3-9; this church operates independently from PDFJ and has rejected the appointment by PFDJ of the head of the church.
  • Eritrean opposition media Asenna TV reports foreigners leaving Asmara, fearing flight cancellations.

Links of interest

ሓይልታት ትግራይ ሒዞምዎ ካብ ዝጸንሑ ቦታታት ክልል ኣምሓራ ከምዘንሰሓቡ ገሊጾም: BBC News ትግርኛ

Twitter: Statement from the Central Command of the Government of Tigray

Dimtsi Weyane: ወታሃደራዊ ኮማንድ ሰራዊት ትግራይ, 21 መስከረም 2015 ዓ.ም

Twitter: Kindeya Gebrehiwot, Member of Tigray government

Twitter: Press release by the the Eritrean Orthodox Church, The Canonical Archdiocese of North America, Europe and Middle East

ATV: በረራ ነፈርቲ ካብ መዓርፎ ነፈርቲ ኣስመራ የቋርጽ – ኤርትራ ዝጸንሑ ዲያስፖራ ኤርትራውያን ብሃታ ሃታ ይወጽኡ – ኢሳያስ ንኤርትራ ዞባ ኲናት ገይሩዋ

Twitter: Rashid Abdi A group of special envoys for HoA from US, UN, AU expected to meet in Nairobi

H.R.8446 – 117th Congress (2021-2022): Global Food Security Reauthorization Act of 2022

Twitter: (19) Ethiopia Map Video showing OLA fighters in combat against local security forces

መግለፂ ማእኸላይ ኮማንድ ፀላኢ ብተደጋጋሚ… – Tigray Communication Affairs Bureau

News: Gambella region rejects Rights Commission’s report, calls it “irresponsible”

(PDF) Crop status in Tigray (north Ethiopia) in August 2022

Disclaimer: All information in this Situation Report is presented as a fluid update report, as to the best knowledge and understanding of the authors at the moment of publication. EEPA does not claim that the information is correct but verifies to the best of ability within the circumstances. Publication is weighed on the basis of interest to understand potential impacts of events (or perceptions of these) on the situation. Check all information against updates and other media. EEPA does not take responsibility for the use of the information or impact thereof. All information reported originates from third parties and the content of all reported and linked information remains the sole responsibility of these third parties. Report to info@eepa.be any additional information and corrections.