Symbolic imageEthiopia installs interim Tigray administration after army pushes back TPLF
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office announced a federal interim administration for Tigray on Friday and promised elections within six months. The TPLF has not yet responded.
The announcement on Friday, 16 October, followed the repulse of an offensive the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) launched on 23 September. TPLF fighters left the regional capital Mekelle without a fight on 3 October. According to Al Jazeera, five officials, including Mekelle's mayor, will run the region and carry out directives from the federal government. The prime minister's office said the administration must create a stable political climate for free and transparent elections, and accused the TPLF of not wanting peace.
Civilians bear the cost
Ten-year-old Iyerusalem lost both legs and her brother to shelling in Qarsole village, she told AFP, as reported by Daily Sabah. At Ayder hospital in Mekelle, another father, Haftom, whose pregnant wife was killed, said no one is held responsible.
Eritrea and US diplomacy
Ethiopia and Eritrea accuse each other of inciting war, and Eritrean troops that entered Tigray withdrew after Ethiopian drone strikes, Al Jazeera reports. In a call on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Abiy to de-escalate.
Other opinions
Le Monde states that Eritrea backs the TPLF and deployed thousands of soldiers, while Al Jazeera notes that Eritrea denies supporting the group.