Reports that Eritrean soldiers have entered northern Ethiopia are raising fresh fears that the renewed fighting in Tigray could develop into a wider regional conflict.
A commander allied with Ethiopia’s federal government said Eritrean personnel had entered the towns of Adigrat and Edaga Hamus this week. Residents have also reported seeing military convoys moving south from the Eritrean border.
The Associated Press could not independently verify the reports. Conflict monitoring group ACLED, however, has also reported that Eritrean troops crossed into Ethiopia at Zelambessa on Wednesday. Ethiopian military drones were reported to have targeted them near Guada.
The reported movements come as fighting between Ethiopia’s federal forces and Tigrayan opposition groups continues to intensify.
Fighting revives fears of another Tigray war
The latest conflict began in late September after months of rising tensions between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF.
The TPLF has joined a wider alliance of armed groups opposing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. Federal forces have since moved against opposition positions in several parts of northern Ethiopia.
Tigrayan forces have withdrawn from Mekelle, the regional capital, which is now under the control of government-aligned forces.
The renewed fighting threatens to unravel the fragile peace that followed the 2020-2022 Tigray war. That conflict caused a devastating humanitarian crisis and left hundreds of thousands of people dead.
Eritrea fought alongside Ethiopian government forces during that war. Relations between the two countries have since deteriorated sharply.
The two governments formally severed diplomatic relations this month. Ethiopia accused Eritrea of hostile activities and involvement in the renewed conflict, while Eritrea rejected the allegations.
Eritrea denies involvement
Eritrea has denied accusations that it is backing the Tigrayan opposition.
Eritrea’s Information Minister has rejected reports of an Eritrean military intervention, accusing Ethiopia of making the claims to justify further military action.
Ethiopian officials have taken a different position.
Senior government official Abraham Belay has accused Eritrean forces of taking part in the fighting and warned that Ethiopia would respond to what it considers foreign military involvement.
The conflicting accounts have been difficult to establish independently because access to parts of Tigray remains restricted and communications have been disrupted.
A region already scarred by war
For people in Tigray, reports of Eritrean soldiers returning to towns along the border carry painful memories.
Eritrean forces were accused of serious abuses during the previous war, when they fought alongside Ethiopian government troops against the TPLF. The conflict ended with the Pretoria peace agreement in November 2022, but tensions between Addis Ababa, Asmara and the TPLF have remained unresolved.
The latest escalation is also unfolding against a broader regional backdrop. Ethiopia and Eritrea have fallen out over a range of security and political issues, including Ethiopia’s push for reliable access to the Red Sea.
The African Union and other international actors have urged restraint as the fighting threatens to spread beyond Tigray.
The reported presence of Eritrean troops remains disputed. But if confirmed, their deeper movement into Tigray would mark a significant escalation in a conflict that is already testing the fragile peace established four years ago.
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