Fighting in Ethiopia’s Tigray region
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An escalating conflict in northern Ethiopia between federal troops and forces loyal to the Tigray regional government is raising fears of civil war in Africa’s second most populous country
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Tigray region: Deadly fighting forcing thousands of Ethiopians to flee across border to Sudan
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SUDAN
Humera Dansha
ERITREA
Mekele
Lake AFAR Tana
AMHARA
ETHIOPIA
OROMIA
Gondar
Addis Ababa
DJIBOUTI

200km 125 miles
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KEY EVENTS LEADING TO TIGRAY CRISIS

1991: Ethiopia’s Derg military regime toppled after protracted war led by Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)
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1991-2018: TPLF dominates Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) – ruling coalition composed of four ethnically-based regional parties
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1998-2000: Tigray’s powerful military also takes lead in Ethiopia’s border war against neighbouring Eritrea
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2018: Abiy Ahmed (above), from largest Oromo ethnic group, comes to power after years of unrest forces his predecessor Hailemariam Desalegn to step down
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Nov 2019: TPLF withdraws from ruling coalition after Abiy merges EPRDF into nationwide Prosperity Party
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Sep 2020: Tigray holds its own elections, defying Abiy’s government which postponed national polls due to coronavirus pandemic
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Nov 4: Abiy declares military offensive and six-month state of emergency in Tigray, accusing TPLF of attacking federal troops based in region
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Picture: Getty Images © GRAPHIC NEWS
Sources: Associated Press, BBC, Reuters