Fighting erupts in northern Ethiopia

Forces from Ethiopia’s Tigray region have launched a major
offensive against the federal government, shattering a four-year-old
peace deal and threatening a wider regional conflict

VIOLENCE IN TIGRAY AND SURROUNDING REGIONS (Sep 22-23, 2026)

ETHIOPIA

ERITREA

SUDAN

AFAR
REGION

AMHARA
REGION

TIGRAY
REGION

Abala
Adigrat
Aksum
Alamata
Badme
Bahir Dar
Dalol
Debark
Gondar
Humera
Mekele
Shire
Woldia

Lake Tana
Red Sea

100km
60 miles

ETHIOPIA

Territory controlled by Tigray
People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)

Disputed area between
Tigray and Amhara

Reported TPLF and allied
ground operations

Airport seized by TPLF

Ethiopian military drone strike

2020: Civil war breaks out
between TPLF and Ethiopian
government forces

Nov 2022: African Union-brokered
Pretoria Agreement brings end to
fighting. Death toll from two-year
war estimated at between 300,000
and 600,000 people

2025: Regional tensions escalate,
as uneasy peace following Pretoria
agreement begins to unravel

Sep 20, 2026
TPLF announces
alliance with six
other armed
groups from
across Ethiopia
aimed at
overthrowing
government of
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (above)

Sep 23: TPLF leaders say they
have entered “defensive” war to
counter aggression by federal
government

Sources: AEI’s Critical Threats Project, Reuters
Picture: Getty Images
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