The takeover deepens pressure on the Pretoria peace deal and adds a new security risk to the Horn of Africa and Red Sea corridor.

Tigray forces seized Alula Aba Nega International Airport in Mekelle on September 23, 2026, in one of the most significant security developments in northern Ethiopia since tensions resumed between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the federal government.

Following the takeover, Ethiopian Airlines suspended flights to Mekelle, Axum and Shire. So far, only the seizure of Mekelle airport has been confirmed.

The escalation follows months of political and military tension. On May 5, the TPLF restored pre-war regional institutions and reinstated Debretsion Gebremichael as regional leader, challenging arrangements created under the Pretoria peace agreement of November 2022.

On September 21, seven Ethiopian armed groups announced a new anti-government alliance that included the TPLF and groups from Amhara, Oromia, Afar and Benishangul-Gumuz.

By September 22–23, fighting had spread into neighboring Afar, particularly around Abala and Erebti, raising concern that the confrontation is moving beyond Tigray.

The current crisis revives tensions rooted in the 2020–2022 Tigray war, which involved federal forces, Tigrayan forces and Eritrean troops before the Pretoria agreement ended large-scale fighting.

The new escalation is also important for the wider region. Tigray borders Eritrea, while Afar extends toward Djibouti and the Red Sea, making any broader conflict relevant to regional trade routes and maritime security.

The fighting comes as the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab are already under pressure from conflict in Yemen, maritime attacks and growing competition over ports and access routes.

The seizure of Mekelle airport therefore marks more than a local military development. It signals renewed strain on Ethiopia’s post-war settlement and raises the risk of another instability front emerging in the Horn of Africa alongside the existing security crisis in the Red Sea.