The prime minister of Ethiopia has declared victory in the government’s war with its Tigray region, but Tigray’s leader says it will win.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his forces had “full control” of Tigray’s capital, Mekele, but the leader of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, Debretsion Gebremichael, told the Associated Press on Monday that he is still in the capital and that fighting has continued.
Debretsion is urging Abiy to “stop the madness” and withdraw troops from the region. The leader projected confidence to the outlet, saying, “We are sure we’ll win.”
When asked about the TPLF’s claims of continued fighting, Abiy’s spokeswoman, Billene Seyoum, told Reuters, “Tracking and responding to the many delusions of a disintegrating criminal clique that has become irrelevant is not our focus.”
Claims from either side are nearly impossible for news outlets to verify as the Ethiopian government has shut off almost all telephone and internet communications in the region.
If the Tigrayan forces refuse to give up fighting, despite their purported losses, experts are concerned it could lead to a drawn-out conflict.
International Crisis Group analyst Will Davison told Reuters, “Although it’s not clear how depleted Tigrayan security forces are by the conflict, armed resistance to federal rule may well be backed by much of the regional government and party apparatus, including local militia, as well as by other Tigrayan nationalist elements.”
Fighting began on Nov. 4 after Abiy claimed the TPLF had attacked federal troops. The prime minister began a military assault on the region, and the TPLF fought back, firing rockets into neighboring regions. Tens of thousands of refugees have since fled into neighboring Sudan.
The TPLF was the dominant party of the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front, for many years. That coalition appointed Abiy as prime minister in 2018. Shortly thereafter, Abiy disbanded the coalition and created the Prosperity Party. The TPLF strongly opposed its formation and did not join.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article stated that the TPLF was the ruling party of Ethiopia until Abiy became prime minister in 2018. The TPLF was instead a political party within the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front. The Washington Examiner regrets the error.
