‘Deteriorating’ situation causes suspension of flights, security and diplomatic sources say.

Source: Al Jazeera

People walk with their belongings, helping an elderly man along with them.
In Tigray’s Hitsats, villagers wait for any delivery of humanitarian aid as the desperation grows [Samuel Getachew/Al Jazeera]

ByAl Jazeera Staffand News Agencies

Published On 29 Jan 202629 Jan 2026

Clashes between Ethiopian federal government troops and Tigrayan forces have erupted in the country’s northern Tigray, a region still devastated and impoverished from a full-blown war and more recent huge cuts in international aid.

The fighting has triggered the suspension of flights, security and diplomatic sources told the AFP news agency on Thursday.

Hostilities broke out in recent days in Tsemlet, western Tigray, an area claimed by forces from the neighbouring Amhara region, the sources told AFP. “The situation appears to be deteriorating,” the security source said on condition of anonymity.

The Tigray war, which started in 2020, killed thousands of people and displaced millions more before the conflict ended in 2022.

Al Jazeera reported in recent days from Hitsats in Tigray, a destitute village that has been sustained mostly by humanitarian organisations, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) – once Ethiopia’s largest source of humanitarian aid.

But that changed abruptly a year ago when US President Donald Trump took office and promptly demolished the agency’s work and cut funding across the globe.

Across Tigray province, humanitarian organisations, including the World Food Programme (WFP), say that up to 80 percent of the population needs emergency support. But the USAID cuts mean there is less humanitarian funding available overall, and what remains is often directed towards hotspots and global conflict zones that are considered worse emergencies.

In Ethiopia, which used to be the largest recipient of USAID funds in sub-Saharan Africa before Trump’s cuts, the funding shortfalls have created critical gaps and put more pressure on other organisations.

In Tigray, “donor funding cuts have placed additional strain on an already fragile public health system,” Joshua Eckley, head of mission at Doctors without Borders for Ethiopia, told Al Jazeera on January 22, before the eruption of clashes.

“As aid actors scale back or suspend activities in the region due to funding constraints, the most vulnerable are experiencing reduced access to medical care, water and sanitation services … while overall humanitarian needs continue to exceed the collective capacity.”

Months after suspending USAID in Ethiopia, the US government announced the resumption of some of its support to the country, but many say little has come to regions like Tigray, whose economy, as well as population, remains devastated after years of conflict.

Fears of renewed civil war as clashes erupt in western Tigray

Ethiopian Airlines suspends all flights to northern region after federal forces and Amhara militias engage Tigrayan troops in contested territory.

By The Africa Report , AFP

A young man walks past a tank said to have belonged to Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) rebels near Debre Tabor, on December 6, 2021.
A young man walks past a tank said to have belonged to Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) rebels near Debre Tabor, on December 6, 2021. © Solan Kolli/AFP

Published today at 13:26 pm (GMT +1)Share

A fragile three-year peace in northern Ethiopia is on the brink of collapse following reports of heavy fighting in western Tigray. The clashes, which erupted in the Tselemt area on or shortly before 29 January, have pitted the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) and allied Amhara militias against Tigrayan armed groups.

The escalation has triggered an immediate shutdown of the region’s primary link to the outside world. Ethiopian Airlines confirmed on Thursday that all scheduled flights to Mekelle, Axum, Shire, and Humera have been suspended indefinitely, citing “unplanned circumstances”.

The Flashpoint: Tsemlet and the Western Zone

The current hostilities are centred on Tselemt, a strategic locality within the disputed Western Tigray zone. This territory has remained a powder keg since the 2022 Pretoria peace deal, as Amhara militias – who seized the land during the 2020–2022 war – have consistently refused to withdraw.

READ MOREThe Four Horsemen of the TPLF: Meet the hardliners seeking to dominate northern Ethiopia

According to diplomatic and security sources, Tigrayan forces are currently facing a combined offensive from the ENDF and Amhara militias. The involvement of federal troops alongside regional militias marks a significant departure from the localised skirmishes seen throughout 2025.

While no official trigger has been confirmed by the government in Addis Ababa, the fighting follows months of “stalled implementation” regarding the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to the zone. A local security source described the situation as “rapidly worsening” on Thursday morning.

Immediate humanitarian and economic impact

The closure of Tigray’s airports has stranded thousands and disrupted the flow of essential medical and commercial supplies. The sudden isolation of the region has sparked panic in urban centres, particularly in the regional capital.

READ MOREInside Tigray’s shadow war: New rebel force shaking Ethiopia’s north

In Mekelle, residents have reported a surge in bank withdrawals as families prepare for a potential siege or prolonged instability. Long queues have formed at branches across the city, although the regional administration has yet to impose formal withdrawal limits.

Humanitarian agencies warn that the timing is particularly dire. 80% of Tigray’s population remains aid-dependent, and the region is already reeling from deep cuts to USAID funding following the policy shifts of the Trump administration in early 2025.

A peace agreement in peril

The 2022 Pretoria Agreement was hailed as the end of one of the world’s deadliest conflicts, which claimed an estimated 600,000 lives. However, the current reality in 2026 suggests the core issues of the war were never fully resolved.

READ MOREEthiopia: Pretoria stopped the war. Politics is imperilling the peace

“The Pretoria deal was a cessation of hostilities, not a solution to the underlying territorial grievances,” says a Horn of Africa analyst at the International Crisis Group. “With the TPLF currently fractured by internal leadership disputes, we are seeing the structural failure of that peace in real-time.”

The global context: Washington and the Horn

The renewed fighting presents an early foreign policy test for the Trump administration, which has advocated for a more “disengaged” approach to African conflicts.

READ MOREUS-Africa Week Ahead: AGOA on tap as Rubio’s deputy heads to the Horn

The recent withdrawal of US mediation efforts over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and significant reductions in humanitarian budgets have, according to some diplomats, “removed the guardrails” that were keeping the Pretoria deal intact.

As of Thursday afternoon, neither the federal government in Addis Ababa nor the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) has issued a formal statement on the fighting. Access restrictions remain in place, making real-time verification of casualties and displacement difficult.