Ethiopian federal forces take Mekelle as the TPLF pulls out of Tigray's capital
5 October 2026
Federal forces and allied Tigray Peace Force fighters hold Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia's Tigray region.
The Tigray People's Liberation Front said it had temporarily moved out of the city to prevent further destruction and would keep fighting from other positions.
Abraham Belay, a former president of the Tigray interim administration, said preparations were under way for a new interim administration and for regional elections within months.
Fighting returned after the TPLF said in July 2026 that the Pretoria agreement of November 2022 had effectively collapsed; the federal government rejected that description.
Explosions were heard in Addis Ababa on 1 October 2026.
The war of 2020 to 2022 killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions, and left disputed territories, the return of displaced people and disarmament unsettled.
In plain words
TPLF Tigray People's Liberation Front — The party that has dominated politics in Ethiopia's Tigray region and fought the federal government in the 2020-22 war.
Pretoria agreement Cessation of Hostilities Agreement signed at Pretoria — The November 2022 deal brokered by the African Union that stopped the Tigray war.