Ethiopian drones have struck Eritrean forces positioned near Adigrat in the northern Tigray region, according to conflict monitors and witnesses, raising fresh concerns that tensions between the neighbouring countries could escalate into a wider war.
The reported strikes came after Eritrean troops crossed into Ethiopia and moved towards Adigrat, amid a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries.
Conflict monitor ACLED said “Eritrean troops and ammunition” in the Adigrat area were hit by multiple drone strikes overnight between Wednesday and Thursday.
“There were many, many drone strikes yesterday. Some Eritrean lorries have been destroyed. They are no longer in the streets,” a witness in Adigrat told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Another resident said a “massive explosion” was heard during the night and that Eritrean military vehicles had been hit by a drone.
A third witness said Eritrean troops appeared to be retreating towards the north.
Neither the Ethiopian nor Eritrean governments immediately responded to questions about the reported fighting.
However, a senior Ethiopian federal army commander played down the situation, saying there were only “small pockets of the enemy forces still resisting and trying to create trouble”.
The latest confrontation follows a rapid deterioration in relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of supporting armed groups in Tigray, while Eritrea has accused Ethiopia of backing opponents of its government and seeking a pretext to invade its territory.
Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Meskel said on X that Ethiopia was “openly working to bring about regime change in Eritrea by providing shelter and support to certain mercenaries who claim to be opposition”.
The two countries, which fought a devastating border war between 1998 and 2000, severed diplomatic ties last week.
Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving landlocked Ethiopia without direct access to the Red Sea. Relations between the countries improved significantly after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in Ethiopia in 2018.
Eritrea later fought alongside Ethiopian forces during the 2020–2022 conflict against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
However, relations deteriorated after the war, with Eritrea expressing dissatisfaction with the peace agreement that ended the conflict. Tensions also increased over Ethiopia’s renewed push for access to the Red Sea.
Earlier this month, Ethiopia expelled 10 Eritrean diplomats and closed its embassy in Asmara. Eritrea subsequently said it would “sever all diplomatic ties” with Ethiopia.
The reported drone strikes and movement of Eritrean troops around Adigrat have now heightened fears that renewed fighting could further destabilise the Horn of Africa.
