Ethiopia's Tigray region capital Mekelle hit by airstrike for second time in week

Ethiopia's Tigray region capital Mekelle hit by airstrike for second time in week
The attack targeted Mekelle's city centre, according to a broadcaster controlled by the Tigray People's Liberation Front.
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Mekelle, the Tigrayan capital, was struck again on Wednesday [YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP/Getty]

Mekelle, the capital of Tigray region in northern Ethiopia, was hit by an airstrike on Wednesday morning, regionally controlled television reported. This is the second time this week the city has been attacked.

Tigrai Television, controlled by the region's Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), reported the attack targeted the city centre. It posted photographs of what appeared to be plumes of billowing smoke, but it was not immediately possible for Reuters to geolocate the photographs.

It was also not immediately possible to reach the Ethiopian government or the TPLF for comment. The two sides have been fighting a war for almost a year that has killed thousands of people and displaced more than 2 million.

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The report of a strike comes two days after two airstrikes hit the city. Rebellious Tigrayan forces accused the Ethiopian government of launching the strikes. Though a government official initially denied any strikes, state-run media later reported the air force conducted an attack.

The news follows intensified fighting in two other Ethiopian regions, where the central government's military is trying to recover territory taken by the TPLF, which recaptured Mekelle and most of the rest of Tigray several months ago.

(Reuters)