Tigray State TV Station Hit By Drone As Heavy Fighting In Ethiopia Resumes

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) A drone hit a public television building Sunday in Tigray state of northern Ethiopia, journalists from the channel told AFP, as fighting raged between the region's forces and the federal government.

Fighting resumed between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the federal government this week, raising fears of a return to the full-blown civil war of 2020-2022 in which an estimated 600,000 died.

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The headquarters of Tigrai TV, seen as the key outlet for the rebel authorities in the regional capital, Mekelle, was hit by a drone around 0600 GMT on Sunday.

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"We heard a loud bang from a drone strike elsewhere and we fled the building," a journalist from the station told AFP.

"Right after we left, it was bombed... and the building was destroyed," they said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Photos taken by an AFP correspondent showed the facade of the Tigrai TV building damaged and blackened, with numerous windows blown out by the explosion.

Another journalist said the station, which has around 400 employees, was off-air after the attack, though no reports of casualties were immediately available.

The federal government in Addis Ababa said on September 21 that Tigrai TV had been suspended "indefinitely", and banned other outlets from broadcasting its reports.

The channel, which is active on X, has not yet commented on the incident.

Communications have been limited since Friday when key telecoms providers reported major disruptions to phone and internet services in Tigray, making reporting on the conflict difficult.

The Tigray rebels seized local airports on Wednesday and launched attacks into the neighbouring states of Afar and Amhara, fighting alongside local armed groups.

Heavy clashes have been reported in both states since then.

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© Agence France-Presse

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