Ethiopia, “after having repositioned a massive military force in Eritrea, has now launched a joint offensive with the invading forces of Eritrea”, against the north of Tigray, bordering Eritrea, announced the command of the rebel forces in a statement.
AFP was unable to verify this claim. Journalists do not have access to northern Ethiopia, making independent verification impossible, and telecommunications networks there operate haphazardly.
The Ethiopian government did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests.
“The enemy, having rejected all offers of peace, deployed large regular and irregular forces, having allied with a foreign force (…) has started a total war”, also accuses the command of the rebel forces.
The rebels also claim that the Ethiopian federal army, like the day before, carried out “repeated breakthrough attempts” on Thursday in southern Tigray, in the neighboring region of Amhara, where Ethiopian soldiers are supported by regional forces. and local militias.
After a five-month truce, fighting resumed on August 24 around the southeastern tip of Tigray, between the Ethiopian federal government and the rebel authorities of Tigray, in conflict since November 2020 and who accuse each other of having triggered this news. hostilities.
The rebels recently announced that they had launched a “counter-offensive” in southern Tigray, after having “defended their positions”. They had progressed on Monday by about fifty kilometers in the Amhara region, according to concordant sources.
