Tigray rebels accuse Ethiopia forces of major offensive

• Tigray rebels have accused the Ethiopian government of attacking them.
• If true, this attack represents a break in the truce.
• Peace negotiations between the warring sides have stalled.

Tigray rebels accused Ethiopian government forces and allied militias of launching a "large-scale offensive" against southern Tigray on Wednesday.

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There was no immediate response from the Ethiopian government and the claims by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) could not be independently verified as the region is under a communications blackout.

TPLF spokesperson Getachew Reda told AFP in Nairobi in a brief message:

He said on Twitter that the "large-scale" offensive was launched "against our positions in the southern front" by the Ethiopian army and special forces and militias from the neighbouring Amhara region.

The TPLF claims come five months after a truce was declared in the brutal conflict in northern Ethiopia that erupted in November 2020.

On Tuesday, the Ethiopian National Defence Force issued a statement accusing the TPLF of seeking to "defame" the army by claiming government forces were moving towards their positions or shelling them with heavy weapons.

A man reacts as people gather around the body of a young man that witnesses say was shot by security forces after breaking curfew.

AFP Eduardo Soteras, AFP

Units of Ethiopian army patrol the streets of Mekelle city of the Tigray region, in northern Ethiopia.

Getty Images Minasse Wondimu Hailu/Anadolu Agency via Getty Ima

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government and the TPLF have been locked in a war of words in recent weeks even as both sides have raised the prospect of peace talks to end the war.

The two sides disagree on who should lead any negotiations, and the TPLF also insists basic services must be restored to the region of six million people before dialogue can begin.