(../../../../favicon_aje.ico) Ethiopian forces expand control in Tigray as militia claims Eritrean losses | Conflict News | Al Jazeera    (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/15/ethiopian-forces-expand-control-in-tigray-as-militia-claims-eritrean-losses)                                              (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2026/10/15/ethiopian-forces-expand-control-in-tigray-as-militia-claims-eritrean-losses)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/reuters_6ad11039-1792086073.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)  (../../../../wp-content/uploads/2026/10/reuters_6ad11039-1792086073.jpg@resize=770,513&quality=80)     (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org/scripttemplates/otSDKStub.js) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (../../../../static/css/vendor~main~d08ff9cb.24bf1742.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~748942c6.6cd3b839.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~b07b7304.e3bc53a0.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~6e6dca10.b9196be1.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~d92ce3db.c3cbd92c.r2.chunk.css) (https://www.aljazeera.com/static/media/Roboto-Bold.52bb58c8.woff2) (https://www.aljazeera.com/static/media/Roboto-Regular.c5bf51b6.woff2)  (../../../../static/css/vendor~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blo~5f903362.2e08e417.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~41c72a2c.6aa6af66.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~06be7c11.0625e98d.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/pages/article-page~493df0b3.93e3f65b.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)   Skip links (ethiopian-forces-expand-control-in-tigray-as-militia-claims-eritrean-losses@traffic_source=rss.html#main-content-area) Skip to Content  (https://www.aljazeera.com/)          (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Sign up  Show navigation menu     Navigation menu (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News    Show more news sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/africa/) Africa   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia/) Asia   (https://www.aljazeera.com/us-canada/) US & Canada   (https://www.aljazeera.com/latin-america/) Latin America   (https://www.aljazeera.com/europe/) Europe   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia-pacific/) Asia Pacific      (https://www.aljazeera.com/middle-east/) Middle East   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/explainer/) Explained   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sports) Sport   (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinion/) Opinion   (https://www.aljazeera.com/videos/) Video   More   Show more sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/aljazeera-originals) Originals   (https://www.aljazeera.com/features/) Features   (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/human-rights/) Human Rights   (https://www.aljazeera.com/climate-crisis) Climate Crisis   (https://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/) Investigations   (https://www.aljazeera.com/interactives/) Interactives   (https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/) In Pictures   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/science-and-technology/) Science & Technology   (https://www.aljazeera.com/audio/podcasts) Podcasts   (https://www.aljazeera.com/travel) Travel   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored/) Sponsored Content        (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Click here to search search     Sign up        (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News |(https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/conflict/) Conflict   Ethiopian forces expand control in Tigray as militia claims Eritrean losses Eritrea denies troop movement inside northern Ethiopia as US calls for de-escalation.   Listen   Listen (3 mins)       Save       Share Ethiopian forces expand control in Tigray as militia claims Eritrean losses on social media share-nodes    Share (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fvpq0hr) facebook      (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Ethiopian%20forces%20expand%20control%20in%20Tigray%20as%20militia%20claims%20Eritrean%20losses&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fvpq0hr) x    (whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fvpq0hr) whatsapp-stroke    (https://aje.news/vpq0hr)  copylink          google       Add Al Jazeera on Google  info      (Houses damaged by a drone strike during fighting between the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) forces in Rama town, near the Eritrean border, Ethiopia, October 15, 2026. Picture taken with a phone. Obtained by Reuters)   Houses damaged by a drone strike during fighting between the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) forces in Rama town, near the Eritrean border, Ethiopia, October 15, 2026 [Reuters]   By  AFPand Anadolu   Published On 15 Oct 2026 15 Oct 2026    Ethiopian forces and allied fighters say they have expanded control across Tigray and entered the historic city of Aksum, as fighting in the northern region continues. The pro-government militia, the Tigray Peace Force (TPF), also claimed on Thursday that troops from neighbouring Eritrea have retreated towards the border.        Solomon Hailemariam, spokesperson for the TPF, said Eritrean forces had sustained significant casualties during the fighting. But Eritrea’s Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel rejected the claims as false in comments to local media. The extent of the reported losses could not be independently verified. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), an independent conflict-monitoring organisation, documented Ethiopian government forces and TPF fighters entering Aksum, while rival Tigrayan fighters remained in surrounding mountainous areas. ACLED also reported Eritrean troops withdrawing across the border through Zalambessa, following advances by Ethiopian forces and their allies into several strategic towns. “Ethiopian troops are on one side, and Eritrean troops are on the other,” Selam, a resident of Zalambessa whose first name was changed for security reasons, told the AFP news agency on Thursday. AFP reported that there is no fighting now, but the town has been without power or water for a week. “We are caught in the middle and living in deep anxiety,” Salem told the news agency. Trading accusations ACLED also documented Ethiopian tanks and heavy weapons moving towards the Eritrean border on Tuesday, raising concerns about a possible confrontation between the neighbouring countries. Advertisement    Addis Ababa has accused Eritrea, as well as Sudan and Egypt, of backing a rebel alliance of seven groups that is fighting the government of Abiy Ahmed. Eritrea has denied accusations that its forces entered Tigray to support the armed opposition groups, accusing Ethiopia of threatening its sovereignty. Eritrea, which fought alongside Ethiopia’s federal army in the 2020-2022 war, (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/2/ethiopia-eritrea-break-ties-does-the-conflict-risk-becoming-regional-war) severed diplomatic ties with Ethiopia over the accusations earlier this month. Khartoum and Cairo have also denied involvement in the conflict. The TPF supports Ethiopia’s federal government in its campaign against the Tigrayan rebels linked to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). Ethiopian forces captured Tigray’s regional capital Mekelle earlier this month, and the TPLF (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/4/government-forces-seize-capital-of-ethiopias-tigray-region-from-rebels) confirmed that it had withdrawn from the city and moved its regional administration “temporarily” to another location. Government forces also retook the towns (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/10/12/11-10-reported-ethiopia-hamza-mohammad-report-abiy-ahmed-ep) of Adwa and Adigrat from  the TPLF without a fight. Further, there are reports of Ethiopian advances in the town of Rama, close to the border with Eritrea. On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called for de-escalation in a phone call with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy, following reports of the alleged confrontation between Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. Rubio said the region could not tolerate more conflict, according to a statement from the US Department of State.                 aj-logo             aj-logo             aj-logo       Advertisement          About About   Show more  (https://www.aljazeera.com/about-us) About Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/code-of-ethics/) Code of Ethics   (https://www.aljazeera.com/terms-and-conditions/) Terms and Conditions   (https://www.aljazeera.com/eu-eea-regulatory/) EU/EEA Regulatory Notice   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/) Privacy Policy   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/cookie/) Cookie Policy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Cookie Preferences    (https://trust.aljazeera.net/accessibility/) Accessibility Statement   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sitemap) Sitemap   (https://careers.aljazeera.net/) Work for us      Connect Connect   Show more  (https://network.aljazeera.net/en/contact?tid=6) Contact Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/user-accounts-help) User Accounts Help   (https://commercial.aljazeera.net/) Advertise with us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/stay-connected) Stay Connected   (https://www.aljazeera.com/newsletters) Newsletters   (https://sat.aljazeera.net/en) Channel Finder   (https://www.aljazeera.com/schedule/) TV Schedule   (https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/) Podcasts   (https://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/tips/) Submit a Tip   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored) Paid Partner Content      Our Channels Our Channels   Show more  (http://aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Arabic   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Al Jazeera English   (https://www.ajiunit.com/) Al Jazeera Investigative Unit   (https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/) Al Jazeera Mubasher   (http://doc.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Documentary   (http://balkans.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Balkans   (http://ajplus.net/) AJ+      Our Network Our Network   Show more  (http://studies.aljazeera.net/en/) Al Jazeera Centre for Studies   (http://training.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Media Institute   (http://learning.aljazeera.net/) Learn Arabic   (http://liberties.aljazeera.com/en) Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights   (http://forum.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Forum   (https://hotels.aljazeera.net/en) Al Jazeera Hotel Partners        Follow Al Jazeera English: (https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera) facebook       (https://twitter.com/ajenglish) twitter     (https://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish) youtube     (https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/?hl=en) instagram-colored-outline                          (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml) rss     (https://bsky.app/profile/aljazeera.com) bluesky     (https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish) tiktok-colored-outline                  (Al Jazeera Media Network logo)   © 2026 Al Jazeera Media Network