Eritrean troops move deep into Ethiopia's Tigray region, residents say

Residents in the northern Tigrayan town of Adigrat have told the BBC that they have witnessed truckloads of soldiers from neighboring Eritrea moving south into Ethiopia. This movement of foreign troops comes as clashes intensify between the Ethiopian national army and regional forces controlled by the Tigray People's Liberation Front, known as the TPLF. The outbreak of fresh violence follows months of simmering tensions that ultimately shattered a fragile 2022 peace agreement, which had successfully brought a halt to a brutal two-year civil war marked by massive casualties and severe humanitarian crises.

According to local accounts, the current military escalation began roughly two weeks ago. Both the federal government in Addis Ababa and the TPLF have traded accusations, each blaming the other for violating the terms of the Pretoria agreement. Furthermore, Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of providing backing to the TPLF, an allegation that the government in Asmara has previously denied. The situation grew even more complex in September with the formation of a new alliance of armed groups in Ethiopia, which included the TPLF. Over the weekend, TPLF forces withdrew from Mekelle, Tigray's main city, leaving it under the control of the national army.

The involvement of Eritrean troops represents a dramatic turn in regional dynamics. During the 2020-2022 civil war, Eritrea served as a key military ally to landlocked Ethiopia, fighting alongside federal forces against the TPLF. However, relations between the two neighboring nations have deteriorated significantly since the end of that conflict. The souring of ties has been largely driven by the Ethiopian prime minister's stated ambitions to secure direct access to a Red Sea port in Eritrea. Last week, the mounting tensions culminated in the two countries formally severing diplomatic relations, fueling widespread international fears of a renewed and expanded regional conflict.

Independent verification of events inside Tigray remains exceptionally difficult, as media access is heavily restricted. Nevertheless, mobile phone and internet connections have gradually been restored to many areas since federal forces retook control of Mekelle. Multiple eyewitness accounts from Adigrat and surrounding towns paint a consistent picture of substantial troop movements. Residents reported seeing dozens of large trucks with Eritrean registration plates transporting soldiers and heavy weaponry, including anti-aircraft guns, along the key corridor heading toward Edaga Hamus and Mekelle.

One anonymous resident in Adigrat described witnessing a convoy of approximately 40 trucks carrying soldiers moving south through the town. A second resident reported seeing additional convoys numbering between 20 and 30 large trucks moving in the same direction, accompanied by troops traveling on foot. Additional sources in Mekelle and Wukro corroborated these accounts, noting that relatives and local observers had tracked extensive military deployments into mountainous terrain along the strategic route. While unverified images circulating on social media appear to show heavily loaded military transports, the exact scale and full operational intent of the Eritrean deployment remain to be fully determined as the situation on the ground continues to evolve rapidly.