Ethiopian Airlines to resume flights to Tigray capital Mekelle
Tuesday December 27 2022
Ethiopian Airlines will resume flights to the capital of the war-torn northern region of Tigray starting December 28, 2022. PHOTO | ISSOUF SANOGO | AFP
Addis Ababa
Ethiopian Airlines will resume flights to the capital of the war-torn northern region of Tigray starting on Wednesday, the airline said in a statement.
It will be making the first commercial flights to Tigray in about 18 months.
The announcement comes a day after a delegation of government officials and heads of public enterprises visited Mekelle to discuss implementation of last month's peace agreement.
The agreement, which included promises to restore services, ended two years of fighting between the Ethiopian federal government and allies against the Tigrayan forces, that killed thousands and displaced millions.
Ethiopia's federal government and leaders in the Tigray region struck a peace accord on November 2 in South Africa followed by an implementation deal signed in Nairobi ten days later.
Flight services restarted for a period after government forces captured Mekelle, Tigray's regional capital, but were stopped again after Tigray forces retook the city.
Last month, Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tasew said that the situation on the ground had improved, and that the airline had completed preparations to start operations to the region.
He said following the peace agreement, the airline had dispatched personnel to Tigray region to assess the safety of airports to accommodate flights.
Additional reporting by Tesfa-Alem Tekle