Security

Tigray Resumes Daily Life Amid Fears of Wider Conflict

Al Jazeera · 4 hours ago · Read the Full Story on Al Jazeera
Tigray Resumes Daily Life Amid Fears of Wider Conflict
AI SUMMARY

While daily life and businesses are gradually resuming in Tigray's capital Mekelle, residents and border communities remain deeply anxious about a wider war and ongoing economic hardships.

  • Ethiopian federal forces and allied fighters retook the Tigray regional capital of Mekelle on October 4.
  • Businesses and financial services are gradually reopening in Mekelle, but many households continue to struggle with a lack of necessities and delayed salaries.
  • Tigray's interim administration announced in March that it could no longer cover monthly salaries for about 137,000 civil servants due to missing federal budget transfers.
  • The regional finance bureau reported an 8.5-billion-birr funding shortfall in April affecting salary payments and development projects.
  • The Ministry of Education arranged temporary placements elsewhere in the country for students enrolled in Tigray, with over 5,000 returning students applying by mid-September.
  • Military movements near the Eritrean border have raised fears of a wider conflict, with reports of troops crossing into towns like Adigrat and Zalambessa.
  • Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos accused Eritrea of sending troops up to 60km into Ethiopian territory on October 8 and appealed to the UN Security Council.
  • Eritrea denied the invasion claims, calling Ethiopia's accusations a declaration of war.
  • Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced a six-month caretaker administration for Tigray on October 16 to restore public services and prepare for elections.