Source: RFI

The fighting took place near the border with Sudan. Residents on the Sudanese side of the border reported hearing explosions and heavy gunfire.

In Ethiopia, hundreds of people fled to Sudan after Saturday’s fighting. Clashes in Tigray pitted federal forces against rebels from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). Both sides accuse each other of trying to ignite a new conflict.

According to a medical source at the border, wounded fighters were transferred to the town of al-Hashaba, 15 km away. This region already hosts thousands of people displaced by the previous war.

The fighting lasted all day Saturday, from approximately 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., according to local and security sources. The TPLF accuses federal authorities of launching a ”  large-scale infantry offensive  .” However, the situation remains unclear: federal authorities have not responded to the accusations, and it is difficult to definitively identify the forces involved.

The fighting is taking place in western Tigray, a disputed region controlled by nationalists from the neighboring regional state of Amhara, where militias are also present. Last week, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Party (EPRP), an opposition party, accused the federal government of pushing Tigray toward renewed war. According to the African Union, the Tigray War claimed approximately 600,000 lives between 2020 and 2022.