Ethiopia: Ethiopian government claims recapture of 2 key towns, rebels say it’s part of plan
Ethiopia’s government said Monday it had recaptured two strategic towns from rebel fighters, the latest in a rapid series of battlefield victories claimed by forces loyal to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
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The announcement marks another dramatic twist in the 13-month-old conflict that has killed thousands of people and triggered a deep humanitarian crisis in the north of Africa’s second most populous nation.
The government’s communications service said on Twitter that Dessie and Kombolcha had been “freed by the joint gallant security forces” that had also taken control of several other towns on the eastern front.
The two cities, which lie in the Amhara region on a highway about 400 kilometres (250 miles) by road northeast of the capital Addis Ababa, were reportedly taken by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) at the end of October.