Tigray Rebels Urged to Disarm as Commander Vows to Continue Fight Against Ethiopian Government
An official within Tigray’s newly established, federally backed administration has called on rebel forces to lay down their weapons in the northern Ethiopian region. The appeal on Friday followed statements from a rebel commander urging fighters to sustain their armed resistance despite losing control of Mekelle, the Tigray region’s capital, earlier in the month.
Fighters belonging to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew from Mekelle in early October after government-allied forces entered the city to counter a rebel attempt to unseat Ethiopia’s government. Following the takeover, federal authorities installed a six-month caretaker administration in Tigray, pledging to restore essential services, facilitate the return of displaced residents, and prepare for future elections.
Despite the leadership shift, sporadic violence persists across the region. Residents in Mekelle reported a drone strike on Tuesday that resulted in four deaths and six injuries as individuals were loading goats onto a truck. These casualty figures could not be independently verified.
Redae Halefom Woldeselassie, a senior official in the Tigray caretaker administration, asserted that rebel forces were fracturing and urged remaining combatants to surrender their arms. Speaking in Mekelle, Redae stated that the current period is not suitable for settling grievances and encouraged fighters to return to their homes and resume civilian lives. He dismissed any possibility of the rebels recapturing the capital, arguing that the ongoing conflict benefits only a small circle of leaders rather than the broader Tigrayan population.
Hours prior to Redae’s remarks, Lieutenant General Fisseha Kidanu appeared on Tigray Broadcast Media, a newly established rebel television station, pledging to reverse recent territorial losses and insisting that Tigray remains in a state of conflict. Fisseha, whose exact location during the broadcast was undisclosed, called upon local militias and volunteers throughout the region to actively engage government-backed forces.
Fisseha encouraged attacks against positions held by the government despite acknowledging the adversary’s superior capabilities in drones and heavy weaponry. While the TPLF has asserted that it inflicted significant casualties on government troops, those claims could not be independently verified.
Government operations in the region involve joint security patrols conducted by Ethiopian troops and allied groups, including the Tigray Peace Force—a faction composed of former members of the TPLF’s armed wing whose presence has added complexity to the renewed hostilities. Redae noted that authorities are taking steps to prevent looting and are making preparations for the return of displaced civilians, though no specific timeline was provided.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed addressed the situation during a broadcast on Monday, accusing the TPLF of forcibly conscripting young individuals into combat rather than disarming in accordance with the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement. The renewed hostilities have effectively dismantled the accord, which had successfully concluded the region’s devastating 2020-2022 conflict. Researchers at Ghent University in Belgium previously estimated that the prior war resulted in approximately 500,000 civilian deaths stemming from direct violence, widespread famine, and the collapse of local health services.
