52 civilians killed in heavy artillery and tank clashes in Ethiopia

At least 52 civilians have been killed in three days of heavy fighting around Alamata in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, according to hospital sources who spoke to the BBC.

Government forces appear to have taken control of the strategic town from Tigrayan regional fighters and are positioning to advance north toward Mekelle, the regional capital. Social media videos show army tanks and armoured vehicles moving through Alamata’s streets after the clashes.

The fighting, which took place between Saturday and Monday, involved heavy explosives and artillery, some of which struck residential areas. A doctor at Alamata General Hospital, who requested anonymity, told the BBC that the dead included children as young as three days old, mothers, and cattle herders. Twelve people were killed in a single strike on the town’s marketplace.

Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) reported that more than 700 wounded people had been admitted to hospitals it supports across Tigray in recent days.

Clashes erupted last week after months of rising tensions between Ethiopia’s federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which controls the regional administration. Both sides accuse each other of violating the 2022 Pretoria agreement that ended a devastating two-year civil war. The TPLF had announced a “defensive war” amid claims of intensifying federal pressure.

Since the fighting began, the government has suspended banking services in Tigray, and internet access has been cut (it is unclear who ordered the shutdown). The conflict has also spilled into neighbouring Amhara region.

The developments have raised fears of a return to wider conflict in northern Ethiopia.