NAIROBI, Kenya
Ethiopia’s rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) claimed Monday that its fighters killed 500 soldiers and wounded 800 others during clashes with federal government forces and allied militias in the country’s northern Tigray region.
The rebel group said the casualties occurred during fighting Saturday near the historic city of Aksum, where its forces launched a counteroffensive against Ethiopian troops and fighters from the allied Tigray Peace Forces (TPF).
According to the TPLF-affiliated Dimtsi Weyane television station, the rebel group killed 500 combatants, including two regiment commanders, and seriously wounded another 800 in the Daero Hafash and May Tmqet areas of Naeder district.
The broadcaster said government troops had advanced from Aksum and Mahbere Dego before encountering resistance from TPLF fighters.
The group also claimed to have captured territory and seized weapons, ammunition, food supplies and medical equipment during the confrontation.
It accused federal forces of using artillery and drones to support their operations and said telephone and internet services had been disrupted in the area.
The Ethiopian government has not commented on the casualty figures, which could not be independently verified.
The latest claims follow weeks of fighting between federal forces and TPLF fighters, raising concerns about renewed large-scale conflict in northern Ethiopia.
Government troops and allied forces captured several towns, including Tigray’s regional capital, Mekelle, in early October, but TPLF fighters have continued mounting counterattacks.
The renewed hostilities have also heightened tensions between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea, which Addis Ababa has accused of supporting armed groups operating in Tigray.
Eritrea has rejected the allegations.
Sudan has separately accused Ethiopia of allowing 70 drone attacks to be launched from its territory between February and October, killing or wounding hundreds of civilians and soldiers.
Sudanese authorities also accused Addis Ababa of supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been fighting Sudan’s army since 2023.
The escalation threatens to deepen instability in a region devastated by the 2020-2022 Tigray war, which displaced millions and caused widespread humanitarian suffering.
