Government-aligned forces enter Mekelle as new Tigray administration is planned
Reports dated 4 October 2026 describe government-aligned forces entering Mekelle after a TPLF withdrawal, while Abraham Belay says preparations are underway for a new Tigray interim administration.
In short
- Reports dated 4 October 2026 describe government-aligned forces entering Mekelle after a TPLF withdrawal, while Abraham Belay says preparations are underway for a new Tigray interim administration.
Government-aligned forces entered Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region, on 4 October 2026, according to a witness cited by the Associated Press. Separately, the Ethiopian News Agency reported that preparations were underway to establish a new interim regional administration.
RFI, in a report carried by AllAfrica on 4 October, also cited local sources saying Ethiopian federal forces had regained control of the city. The accounts support the reported entry into Mekelle but do not independently establish the extent of control across Tigray.
AP reported that the Tigray People’s Liberation Front announced its withdrawal in a statement on 3 October. The movement had seized the city and its airport in September, according to AP.
Abraham Belay, identified by ENA as a former president of the Tigray Interim Administration, said the federal government was preparing a new administrative structure. ENA’s account, dated 4 October and subsequently carried by AllAfrica, said local administrative bodies would be organized with community participation following military operations.
Belay said the aim was to hold regional elections within months. The report did not provide a fixed polling date or identify the leadership of the proposed interim administration. His comments describe government plans; they do not establish that the administration has already been formed or that an election timetable has been approved.
