Ethiopia: Most rebellious Tigray leaders either killed or captured

Ethiopia has said its troops have captured or killed most commanders of a rebellious northern force, while Tigray's fugitive local leader countered that civilians were protesting against looting by occupying soldiers.

Neither side gave proof for their assertions about the month-long war in the mountainous region bordering Eritrea where phone communications have been down and access severely restricted.

A senior military commander, General Tesfaye Ayalew, said on Friday that "almost all of the enemy", including former federal colonels and generals who fought on the Tigrayan side, were defeated or dead. 

"But the ones who made the plans and the criminals are still on the run and hiding," he told state-affiliated Fana TV.

Fighting between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's federal army and forces loyal to the region's former ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), erupted on November 4.

Thousands of people are believed to have died while more than 45,000 refugees have crossed over to neighbouring Sudan.

READ MORE: Ethiopia accused of blocking access to Sudan for those fleeing Tigray

Guerrilla-style resistance

TPLF leaders, who enjoy strong popular support in Tigray, appear to have fled to surrounding mountains and say they have begun a guerrilla-style resistance.

TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael, one of the most wanted men in Ethiopia, told Reuters news agency in a text message that there were protests in Mekelle city, which is home to 500,000 people, due to looting by Eritrean soldiers.

"Eritrean soldiers are everywhere," he said, repeating an accusation that President Isaias Afwerki has sent soldiers over the border to back Abiy against their mutual foe.

Both Ethiopia and Eritrea have denied that.

Thousands killed, Tigray side asserts

Meanwhile, Getachew Reda, a senior adviser to the Tigray leader, in an interview with Tigray TV aired on Thursday urged young people and others in the region to "rise and deploy to battle in tens of thousands."

"Our capacity to resist ultimately depends on the support we get from our people," Getachew said. 

"It is possible to have the scenario where we stop everything and turn all the people into soldiers."

He didn't say how many people are actively fighting but said "our army is doing amazing things with limited numbers," and he claimed there had been tens of thousands of deaths among Ethiopian forces and those from neighboring Eritrea.

Getachew also acknowledged casualties on the TPLF side but didn't say how many.

TPLF seeks to internationalise conflict

Ethiopia says the TPLF wants to internationalise the conflict as a way to force the government, which appears to hold all the major towns, into international mediation.

Debretsion, a 57-year-old former guerrilla radio operator, gave no evidence of looting or the presence of Eritreans. 

A diplomatic source shared a picture of a road covered in stones, which he said was sent from a resident of Mekelle, but it was unclear where or when the picture was shot.

On Wednesday, state TV showed images of people shopping and sitting on stools in Mekelle city. But there have been no images of security forces interacting with residents.

Abiy's spokeswoman Billene Seyoum said she would not comment on unverifiable text messages.

READ MORE: Why Ethiopia's Tigray conflict won't turn into a protracted insurgency

Humanitarian crisis

Relief agencies are extremely worried about the lack of food, fuel, medicines and even bodybags in Tigray.

Convoys are on standby to take aid in.

The United Nations sounded the alarm about fighting and deaths - including of aid workers, sources told Reuters - around camps for Eritrean refugees.

Mulu Nega, appointed by Abiy as chief executive of a new Provisional Administration of Tigray, said the government was channelling help to parts of west Tigray under its control.

"Our priority in the region now is to restore peace," the 52-year-old former academic told state-run EBC.

In Sudan, refugees recounted horror stories of fleeing from Tigray along roads strewn with bodies and also spoke of Eritrean involvement. 

Tewodros Tesera, a surgeon from the border town of Humera, said shells had come from the Eritrean side over the Tekeze River in the early days of battles.

"The shells were falling in front of the hospital where I work," he recalled by phone from the Hamdayet refugee camp.

"We heard 'boom', then 20 seconds, then whistle, then a second heavy bombing, which struck the ground and buildings. Houses, a mosque and a church were damaged."

READ MORE: Ethiopia's needless war

What led to the conflict?

Abiy took office in 2018 after nearly three decades of TPLF-led government.

He began opening up a closed economy and repressive political system, won a Nobel Peace Prize for a pact with Eritrea, and took action over corruption and rights abuses.

He speeded up the release of more than 30,000 political prisoners.

But the trials of senior Tigrayan officials for torture, murder and corruption irked the TPLF, who said the arrests were politically motivated. 

Abiy's government has also jailed thousands of citizens following bouts of violent unrest.

At least six journalists have been arrested since the Tigray conflict began.

The TPLF accuses Abiy, their former political partner, of trying to increase personal power over Ethiopia's 10 regions. 

Abiy denies that, calling them criminals who mutinied against federal authority, attacked a military base, and were wildly over-represented in government for a group that only accounts for six percent of the population.

READ MORE: What led to Abiy Ahmed’s military operation in Ethiopia's Tigray region?