Ethiopian official promises change in Tigray after troops retake regional capital

A former Tigray leader now advising Ethiopia’s prime minister has promised a “visible change” in the regionNAIROBI, Kenya -- A former Tigray leader now advising Ethiopia’s prime minister on Sunday promised a “visible change” in the region after government-allied units retook Mekelle city following renewed fighting with opposition forces.Ethiopian Airlines resumed flights to the city of Mekelle on Sunday for the first time since rebels led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front seized the airport on Sept. 23. They withdrew Oct. 3, when government-allied fighters entered the city.Renewed fighting in Tigray has undermined the 2022 peace agreement that ended a two-year war, as mounting tensions between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea have raised fears of a wider conflict.“I would like to assure you on this occasion that we will bring visible change, a change beyond mere hope,” Getachew Reda, an adviser to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, told supporters who greeted him and intelligence chief Redwan Hussein at Mekelle airport. He did not elaborate. The 2020-2022 war in Tigray caused about 500,000 civilian deaths from violence, famine and the collapse of health services, according to researc...