Fighting erupts on the border of northern Ethiopia's Tigray region

Fighting between forces from northern Ethiopia's Tigray region and central government forces has erupted in the vicinity of Kobo town, ending the months-long ceasefire, residents, the Ethiopian government and a spokesman for the Tigray forces said on Wednesday.

The fighting is a major blow to attempts to hold peace talks between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front, the party that controls the region.

The two sides exchanged accusations of being responsible for the outbreak of the fighting.

"At five o'clock this morning, the TPLF attacked the eastern front from the direction of Bisubur, Zobel and Tekulchi. With this step, you have effectively violated the ceasefire," the state communications service said in a statement.

The day before, when social media sites were inflamed with allegations of troop movement, the army issued a statement accusing the Tigrayan forces of preparing to launch an attack and covering up their movements by spreading false news about military movements.

"The secret has been revealed and it has become clear that (the Tigray People's Liberation Front) is carrying out a campaign to criminalize our army," the statement said, accusing the group of fomenting "pre-conflict propaganda."

In turn, the military command of the Tigray forces accused the government of violating the ceasefire, saying in a statement that it believed that the attack near Kobo, south of Tigray, was a shift and that its forces expected a major attack from the west.

The statement by the Tigray Forces identified the units it said had been sent to the front line, and stated that the government had been repositioning its forces for five days.

Three residents said they heard heavy weapons from the early morning.

They added that there have been movements of Ethiopian soldiers, Amhara Special Forces and Fano forces (volunteer militia) during the past two days.

Residents said they did not know who started the fighting, at a time when telephone communications within Tigray had been disrupted for more than a year.

Ethiopian government spokesman Legis Tulu, military spokesman Colonel Geetnet Adan and Prime Minister Beilin Seyoum's spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment.

The fighting in Africa's second most populous country has displaced millions, pushed parts of Tigray to the brink of famine and killed thousands of civilians.

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