Aregawi was establishing a tour-guiding business when conflict broke out in Ethiopia’s Tigray region in 2020. Subsequently, he spent two years fighting on the front-line. Now, he is among the individuals concerned that Tigray may be on the verge of another conflict.

“We don’t want to become a battleground, but it seems like war is near, maybe even inevitable,” he remarked.

The war between Tigray’s insurrectionist leaders and Ethiopia’s federal government concluded in 2022, resulting in approximately 600,000 fatalities and nearly 10% of women aged between 15 and 49 in Tigray experiencing rape, as per a British Medical Journal study.

Nonetheless, the failure to implement the majority of ceasefire stipulations—including the return of nearly one million displaced individuals—and a dispute over resources has divided the ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) party.

Tensions escalated this month when Tigray’s acting president, Getachew Reda, attempted to dismiss three senior military commanders, having earlier accused his forces of plotting a coup.

Ever since, a coup appears to have materialized. In the last week, a rival TPLF faction, led by the party chair Debretsion Gebremichael, installed its officials in provincial government offices. It also took over the mayor’s office and the primary radio station in the regional capital, Mekelle. Getachew fled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital.

In this environment, there are expanding concerns over tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea. In spite of having fought alongside each other in Tigray, the neighboring nations have been at odds for months due to Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed’s determination to regain access to the Red Sea, which was lost when Eritrea seceded in 1993.

Eritrea has ordered a nationwide mobilization and is attempting to undermine Abiy by backing rebels fighting Ethiopia’s military in the Amhara region bordering Tigray. There are reports that Eritrean intelligence aided Debretsion’s TPLF faction during last week’s coup.

Ethiopia has dispatched tanks and troops to the Eritrean border, and state media has amplified voices endorsing Ethiopia’s claims over Assab port.

Last week, Gen Tsadkan Gebretensae, Tigray’s vice-president, warned that war could reignite “at any moment,” and the region risks “becoming a battlefield” again.

The situation could escalate Abiy struggles with Tigray, which still has a formidable 200,000-strong military force, and as the new leaders in Tigray aim to regain control of western Tigray, a fertile region with gold mines captured by Amhara forces during the war.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/mar/21/tigray-mekelle-coup-war-ethiopia-eritrea-assab-port-abiy-ahmed