Ethiopian Airlines has suspended all air links to Mekelle in Tigray since Wednesday.
On the night of September 23, fighters from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) seized control of Mekelle’s Alula Aba Nega International Airport, which had previously been guarded by federal police. Local sources, including a security source, confirmed the takeover to several media outlets.
In response to the situation, Ethiopian Airlines announced the temporary suspension of all flights to Mekelle, Axum, and Shire, apologizing to customers for the inconvenience but providing no date for the resumption of services.
An armed alliance worrying Addis Ababa
The airport takeover is not an isolated incident. Three days earlier, on September 20, the TPLF had formalized the creation of a united front with six other armed groups and opposition movements, reportedly including Fano factions and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), with the stated aim of toppling Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. This announcement marks a clear break from the fragile truce established by the Pretoria peace agreement, signed in November 2022, which had ended a war that claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, according to African Union observer estimates.
It is worth noting that prior to this new suspension, Mekelle had been receiving fifty flights per week, an average of more than seven daily flights operated by Boeing 737s, since the resumption of flights to Tigray last February.