An official in Tigray’s new federal-backed administration has urged rebel fighters to lay down their weapons An official in Tigray’s new federal-backed administration urged rebel fighters to lay down their weapons Friday, hours after a rebel commander called for continued resistance despite losing the northern Ethiopian region’s capital. The calls came nearly three weeks after rebels trying to overthrow the government lost control of Mekelle, Tigray's capital. Government-allied fighters entered Mekelle on Oct. 4 after the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, withdrew.
Redae Halefom Woldeselassie, the caretaker administration’s chief executive for political and public mobilization, said rebel forces were collapsing and urged fighters to enter a disarmament and reintegration program. He dismissed the prospect of the rebels retaking the city and portrayed the conflict as serving a small group of leaders rather than the people of Tigray. Fisseha Kidanu, who was identified in a television broadcast as commander of the Tigray army, pledged to reverse recent military setbacks.
His location was not disclosed. Fisseha urged attacks on government-held positions despite his opponents’ advantages in drones and heavy weapons. The TPLF has also claimed to have inflicted heavy losses on government forces.
The could not independently verify those claims. Ethiopia’s government subsequently established a six-month caretaker administration promising to restore services, help displaced people return and prepare for elections. The government’s allies include the Tigray Peace Force, comprising former members of the TPLF’s armed wing — a division within Tigrayan forces that has complicated the renewed conflict.
Redae said Ethiopian troops and allied forces were conducting joint security operations, including measures to prevent looting. He promised preparations for displaced residents to return but gave no timetable. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, speaking Monday to the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, accused the TPLF of acquiring weapons and forcibly recruiting young people instead of disarming under the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement.
He said his government had done everything within its capacity to implement the accord. At Ayder Hospital in Mekelle, Luel Berhanu, 22, and Samuel Belay, 20, said they were loading goats onto a truck in Finariwa, about 80 kilometers (49 miles) south of the city, when a strike hit around 9:30 p.m. They said four civilians were killed and about six people wounded.
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