Federal troops and allied fighters retook Mekelle after the Tigray People's Liberation Front said it had temporarily left the regional capital.
Ethiopian government forces and allied militias regained control of Mekelle, the capital of Tigray, on Saturday, three sources told Reuters on Sunday. The loss is a major setback for the opposition alliance that has held the northern regional capital.
The Tigray People's Liberation Front said on Facebook that it had retreated and that the regional government would temporarily operate from somewhere else. Al Jazeera reported a TPLF social-media statement that the group had temporarily moved out of Mekelle. A source close to the pro-government Tigray Peace Forces told Reuters its fighters entered the city center on Saturday afternoon, followed by the Ethiopian military.
A humanitarian source and a Mekelle resident, both unnamed, confirmed to Reuters that government forces controlled the city. AFP, citing a humanitarian source, reported that staff on the ground said the TPLF had abandoned the capital and that federal and allied forces had been observed in several locations. The prime minister's office did not immediately respond to Reuters.
Fighting resumed on 23 September after seven armed and political groups announced an alliance aimed at removing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and forming a transitional administration, Reuters and Al Jazeera reported. Federal forces had earlier retaken Mekelle's main airport.
The reports rely on the TPLF statement, militia and humanitarian sources, and residents rather than an on-the-record government confirmation. Neither Reuters nor Al Jazeera published a casualty figure for the city's fall.