War has returned to Ethiopia’s Tigray — and former enemies are now fighting together. What changed?

Nearly four years ago, a peace deal ended the brutal war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, one of the deadliest conflicts of the 21st century. Now, the violence has returned — but the battle lines have changed.

Tigrayan rebels are again fighting the federal government, while forces that were once enemies are now fighting side by side.

On Wednesday, Tigrayan forces seized three airports controlled by the federal government, while fighting also broke out in the neighboring regions of Amhara and Afar.

The hostilities have shattered the 2022 peace agreement that ended a war estimated to have killed around 600,000 people . Relations between the federal government and Tigray’s leaders had been worsening for months.

It’s unclear what led to the recent fighting, with both sides offering conflicting accounts.

Tigray’s regional government said federal forces attacked first and that it ordered its forces to respond, calling it a “defensive war.” While Getachew Reda, an adviser to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, said the TPLF had launched an “all-out offensive” against government positions in Afar and Amhara and seized the three airports in Tigray, accusing it of taking “irresponsibility to new heights.”

The renewed violence this week follows almost two months of smaller clashes. The nongovernmental organization Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) says fighting between Tigrayan and federal forces began near Ethiopia’s border with Sudan on August 1. The two sides also accused each other of starting those clashes.

According to ACLED, federal drone strikes and Tigrayan troop deployments followed, with Tigrayan forces moving tanks and artillery south this month.

National carrier Ethiopian Airlines has suspended all flights to Tigray after the airport seizures.

Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images

The TPLF was once Ethiopia’s most powerful political force. It dominated the coalition that governed the country for nearly three decades, despite Tigrayans making up a relatively small share of Ethiopia’s population.

That changed after Abiy became prime minister in 2018 following years of anti-government protests. He introduced political reforms and made peace with neighboring Eritrea, which won him the Nobel Peace Prize a year later.

But relations with the TPLF deteriorated. Abiy replaced the old ruling coalition with his Prosperity Party in 2019; the TPLF refused to join.

‘Practically this has been a genocide’

After national elections were postponed during the Covid-19 pandemic, Tigray held its own regional vote despite objections from Addis Ababa.

In November 2020, Tigrayan forces attacked federal military bases in the region. Abiy sent troops in, and Eritrean forces and fighters from Amhara later fought alongside the federal army.

By the time the war ended two years later, millions of people had been displaced and parts of Tigray had been pushed into famine. Both sides faced accusations of serious human rights abuses.

Eduardo Soteras/AFP/Getty Images

Phill Magakoe/AFP/Getty Images

Hostilities came to an end when the federal government and TPLF signed an African Union-brokered agreement in Pretoria, South Africa, on November 2, 2022.

Under the deal, Tigrayan forces were to disarm and federal authority would return to the region. Humanitarian aid and basic services would resume, and an interim administration was later set up to govern Tigray until elections.

But major disputes remained, including over territory claimed by both Tigray and Amhara and the return of people displaced by the war. Meanwhile, Eritrea, whose soldiers had fought alongside federal forces, was not party to the agreement.

“The agreement didn’t collapse overnight — it was systematically hollowed out over three years,” Surafel Getahun, an Ethiopian geopolitics researcher, told CNN.

Getahun said both sides bore responsibility. He accused the federal government of failing to fulfill key parts of the agreement, including returning displaced people, and the TPLF of breaching it by retaking control of the regional administration and rebuilding its military forces.

The TPLF was also divided by an internal power struggle , which further weakened the peace process. Rival factions emerged around TPLF chairman Debretsion Gebremichael and Reda, the head of the Tigray interim administration who had been a senior TPLF figure. Reda was later expelled from the party by Gebremichael’s faction, and Abiy appointed a new interim leader in April 2025.

A month later, Gebremichael’s faction took back control of Tigray’s government . It restored the regional legislature that existed before the war and installed Gebremichael as regional president.

Amanuel Sileshi/AFP/Getty Images

On Sunday, the TPLF joined six other armed groups in a new alliance seeking to remove Abiy’s government and establish a transitional administration. The alliance includes former enemies who fought on opposite sides of the last war.

TPLF spokesman Michael Asgedom told the Associated Press the groups would cooperate politically and militarily. Asked whether joining the alliance violated the Pretoria agreement, Asgedom said the accord was “no longer valid.”

The Amhara Fano National Movement fought alongside the federal government against the TPLF during the last war, then turned against it in 2023. The Oromo Liberation Army, which has long fought Abiy’s government in Oromia, is also a member.

Reuters reported Wednesday that Tigrayan forces were fighting alongside the Fano group in Amhara and a local armed group in Afar.

But Getahun questioned how long the alliance would hold.

The TPLF and Fano remain divided over contested territory, particularly Western Tigray, and its members have different political and military goals.

“This is a temporary marriage of convenience against a mutual enemy rather than a lasting political agreement,” he said.

Abiy’s spokesperson, Billene Seyoum, told Reuters on Monday that the groups had already been working together with financial backing from Eritrea. Relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea have deteriorated since their forces fought together in the last war, though the Eritrean government has repeatedly denied supporting Ethiopian armed groups.

The African Union (AU) said Wednesday that the airport seizures were inconsistent with the Pretoria deal and urged both parties to de-escalate. It also asked for help from former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, who helped mediate the 2022 agreement.

Abel Gerezgiher/AFP/Getty Images

Tigray has yet to recover from the last war, with communities still rebuilding and many displaced people still unable to return home.

Ethiopia is already dealing with armed conflicts in Amhara and Oromia, and ACLED says the federal military was “stretched” before the renewed fighting with the TPLF. But the armed groups in the new alliance vary in their fighting capacity, with several lacking the organization or recruits for wider operations and others largely confined to local areas, according to the conflict monitor.

There is also the risk of Eritrea’s military becoming involved. Tensions have grown between the two countries over Ethiopia’s push for access to the Red Sea , including through Eritrea’s port of Assab. The AU urged Ethiopia’s neighbors to avoid actions that could fuel the conflict.

The region is already grappling with the war in Sudan and longstanding tensions between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan over the Nile.

Getahun warned that the current fighting could become even more devastating than the previous conflict.

“A renewed war would likely end up far bloodier and more widespread than the 2020–2022 fighting,” he said.

“Immediate de-escalation and dialogue” are now essential, he added, arguing that negotiations remain “the only viable path forward.”

近四年前，一项和平协议结束了埃塞俄比亚北部提格雷地区的残酷战争，这场战争是21世纪最致命的冲突之一。如今，暴力事件再次爆发——但交战双方的阵营已经发生了变化。

提格雷叛军再次与联邦政府交战，而曾经的敌人现在却并肩作战。

周三，提格雷州武装力量占领了联邦政府控制的三座机场，与此同时，邻近的阿姆哈拉州和阿法尔州也爆发了战斗。

敌对行动破坏了2022年结束战争的和平协议，据估计，这场战争造成约60万人死亡。联邦政府与提格雷领导人之间的关系几个月来一直在恶化。

目前尚不清楚是什么原因导致了最近的冲突，双方都给出了相互矛盾的说法。

提格雷州地方政府称，联邦军队首先发动攻击，并命令其部队进行反击，称之为“防御性战争”。而埃塞俄比亚总理阿比·艾哈迈德的顾问格塔丘·雷达则表示，提格雷人民解放阵线（提人阵）对阿法尔州和阿姆哈拉州的政府军阵地发动了“全面进攻”，并占领了提格雷州的三座机场，指责提人阵“肆意妄为，令人发指”。

本周再次爆发的暴力冲突，是在近两个月的小规模冲突之后发生的。非政府组织“武装冲突地点与事件数据项目”（ACLED）称，提格雷武装和联邦军队之间的战斗于8月1日在埃塞俄比亚与苏丹边境附近爆发。双方还互相指责对方挑起冲突。

根据 ACLED 的报道，随后联邦政府发动了无人机袭击，提格雷军队也进行了部署，本月提格雷部队将坦克和大炮南下。

埃塞俄比亚国家航空公司在机场被查封后暂停了所有飞往提格雷的航班。

Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images

提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）曾是埃塞俄比亚最强大的政治力量。尽管提格雷人在埃塞俄比亚人口中所占比例相对较小，但它却主导了执政联盟近三十年。

在经历了多年的反政府抗议活动后，阿比于2018年就任总理，情况发生了改变。他推行了政治改革，并与邻国厄立特里亚实现了和平，一年后因此荣获诺贝尔和平奖。

但与提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）的关系恶化。2019年，阿比用他的繁荣党取代了原有的执政联盟；提格雷人民解放阵线拒绝加入。

“这实际上就是一场种族灭绝。”

在新冠疫情期间全国大选推迟后，提格雷州不顾亚的斯亚贝巴的反对，举行了自己的地区选举。

2020年11月，提格雷武装袭击了该地区的联邦军事基地。阿比总理派遣军队进入该地区，随后厄立特里亚军队和阿姆哈拉州的武装人员与联邦军队并肩作战。

两年后战争结束时，数百万人流离失所，提格雷部分地区陷入饥荒。交战双方都面临着严重侵犯人权的指控。

爱德华多·索特拉斯/法新社/盖蒂图片社

Phill Magakoe/法新社/盖蒂图片社

2022 年 11 月 2 日，联邦政府和提格雷人民解放阵线在南非比勒陀利亚签署了由非洲联盟斡旋的协议，敌对行动就此结束。

根据协议，提格雷武装将解除武装，联邦政府将恢复对该地区的控制。人道主义援助和基本服务将恢复，随后将成立一个临时政府来管理提格雷，直至举行选举。

但主要争议依然存在，包括提格雷州和阿姆哈拉州都声称拥有主权的领土问题，以及战争流离失所者的返乡问题。与此同时，曾与联邦军队并肩作战的厄立特里亚并未加入该协议。

“这项协议不是一夜之间崩溃的——它是在三年多的时间里被系统性地掏空的，”埃塞俄比亚地缘政治研究员苏拉费尔·格塔洪告诉 CNN。

格塔洪表示，双方都负有责任。他指责联邦政府未能履行协议的关键条款，包括安置流离失所者，并指责提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）通过重新控制地方行政机构和重建军队违反了协议。

提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）内部也爆发了权力斗争，这进一步削弱了和平进程。围绕提格雷人民解放阵线主席德布雷齐翁·格布雷米凯尔和提格雷临时政府首脑雷达（曾是提格雷人民解放阵线的高级人物）出现了不同的派系。雷达后来被格布雷米凯尔的派系开除出党，阿比于2025年4月任命了一位新的临时领导人。

一个月后，格布雷米凯尔的派系重新控制了提格雷政府。他们恢复了战前存在的地区立法机构，并任命格布雷米凯尔为地区总统。

阿曼纽尔·西莱什/法新社/盖蒂图片社

周日，提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）与其他六个武装团体组成新的联盟，旨在推翻阿比政府并建立过渡政府。该联盟成员包括曾在上次战争中分属敌对阵营的昔日敌人。

提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）发言人迈克尔·阿斯格多姆告诉美联社，双方将在政治和军事上进行合作。当被问及加入该联盟是否违反了《比勒陀利亚协议》时，阿斯格多姆表示该协议“已不再有效”。

阿姆哈拉法诺民族运动在上一次战争中与联邦政府并肩作战，对抗提格雷人民解放阵线，但在2023年转而反对提格雷人民解放阵线。长期在奥罗米亚与阿比政府作战的奥罗莫解放军也是该运动的成员。

路透社周三报道称，提格雷武装力量正在阿姆哈拉州与法诺武装并肩作战，并在阿法尔州与当地武装团体作战。

但格塔洪质疑该联盟能维持多久。

提格雷人民解放阵线和法诺在领土争端问题上仍然存在分歧，特别是西提​​格雷问题，而且其成员的政治和军事目标也各不相同。

他说：“这只是为了对抗共同敌人而达成的暂时性权宜婚姻，而不是一项持久的政治协议。”

阿比的发言人比莱内·塞尤姆周一告诉路透社，这些武装团体此前已在厄立特里亚的财政支持下开展合作。自埃塞俄比亚和厄立特里亚军队在上次战争中并肩作战以来，两国关系持续恶化，尽管厄立特里亚政府一再否认支持埃塞俄比亚武装团体。

非洲联盟（非盟）周三表示，机场查封行动与比勒陀利亚协议不符，并敦促双方缓和局势。非盟还请求曾参与斡旋2022年协议的尼日利亚前总统奥卢塞贡·奥巴桑乔提供帮助。

阿贝尔·格雷兹吉赫/法新社/盖蒂图片社

提格雷尚未从上次战争中恢复过来，社区仍在重建，许多流离失所者仍然​​无法返回家园。

埃塞俄比亚阿姆哈拉州和奥罗米亚州本已深陷武装冲突，冲突及事件数据项目（ACLED）指出，在与提格雷人民解放阵线（TPLF）再次交战之前，联邦军队就已经捉襟见肘。但据该冲突监测机构称，新联盟中的各武装团体战斗力参差不齐，一些团体缺乏组织或人员储备以开展更大规模的行动，而另一些团体则主要局限于地方活动。

此外，厄立特里亚军队介入的风险也不容忽视。埃塞俄比亚力图获得红海通道，包括通过厄立特里亚的阿萨布港，导致两国关系日益紧张。非盟敦促埃塞俄比亚的邻国避免采取任何可能加剧冲突的行动。

该地区目前正饱受苏丹战争以及埃塞俄比亚、埃及和苏丹之间因尼罗河而产生的长期紧张局势的困扰。

格塔洪警告说，目前的战斗可能会比之前的冲突更具破坏性。

他说：“如果再次爆发战争，其结果可能会比 2020 年至 2022 年的战斗更加血腥、范围更广。”

他补充说，“立即缓和局势和展开对话”至关重要，并认为谈判仍然是“唯一可行的前进道路”。