ADDIS ABABA: Only combatants, not civilians, were struck in an air strike this week in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, the country’s military spokesman said on Thursday.
Col. Getnet Adane told Reuters in an interview in Addis Ababa that the combatants in the town of Togoga were dressed in civilian clothes.
An air strike killed at least 43 people in the town on Tuesday, a medical official told Reuters. The strike took place after residents said new fighting had flared in recent days north of the regional capital Mekelle.
A resident of the town told Reuters on Wednesday that the air strike a day earlier had hit a market in the town west of Mekelle at around 1 p.m. That resident also said that her 2-year-old daughter had been injured in the attack.
The military spokesman said the combatants were not inside the market, but had gathered in the town to commemorate the anniversary of the bombing of another town in Tigray, Hawzen, in 1988. That attack, by Ethiopia’s then-ruling Communist leaders, killed hundreds of people and is widely commemorated in Tigray.
The spokesman said he did not have the death toll from the strike but that it would come soon.
The military has been battling forces loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the region’s former ruling party, since November. Fighting has displaced 2 million people, and the United Nations has warned of a possible famine.
Asked about children injured in Tuesday’s attack, the spokesman said the TPLF uses propaganda and is known for faking injuries. He also said that doctors quoted by the media are not “real doctors.”
The remarks were the first acknowledgement by the military of the air strike, which came after residents said new fighting had flared in recent days north of Tigray’s regional capital Mekelle.
Previously, Getnet, the military spokesman, had declined to confirm or deny the incident, saying air strikes were a common military tactic and that government forces do not target civilians.
The air strike took place as Ethiopian officials counted ballots from national and regional parliamentary elections held this week in seven of the nation’s 10 regions.
No voting was held in Tigray, and security concerns and problems with ballot papers also delayed voting in two other regions.
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Ethiopian military says only combatants hit in Tigray air strike
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Ethiopian military says only combatants hit in Tigray air strike
- An air strike killed at least 43 people in the town on Tuesday, a medical official told Reuters
Trump says agreed ‘framework’ for US deal over Greenland
- US president says he would waive tariffs scheduled to hit European allies
- Announcment follows meeting with NATO chief
DAVOS: US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he had reached a framework for a deal over Greenland following a meeting with NATO chief Mark Rutte, and that he would therefore waive tariffs scheduled to hit European allies.
“We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The US president did not provide any details on the framework, but added that his threatened tariffs against European countries who were resisting his quest to acquire Greenland was now off the table.
“Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1st,” Trump wrote.
Trump’s quest to take the strategic Arctic island of Greenland from NATO ally Denmark has deeply shaken the global order and markets.
In a speech on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Trump for the first time ruled out using force, but demanded “immediate negotiations” to acquire the island from Denmark.
“We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable — but I won’t do that,” Trump said.
“I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland.”
Wall Street stocks opened higher Wednesday after his speech, and jumped further following his Truth Social post.
Trump insists mineral-rich Greenland is vital for US and NATO security against Russia and China.
“We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The US president did not provide any details on the framework, but added that his threatened tariffs against European countries who were resisting his quest to acquire Greenland was now off the table.
“Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1st,” Trump wrote.
Trump’s quest to take the strategic Arctic island of Greenland from NATO ally Denmark has deeply shaken the global order and markets.
In a speech on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Trump for the first time ruled out using force, but demanded “immediate negotiations” to acquire the island from Denmark.
“We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable — but I won’t do that,” Trump said.
“I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland.”
Wall Street stocks opened higher Wednesday after his speech, and jumped further following his Truth Social post.
Trump insists mineral-rich Greenland is vital for US and NATO security against Russia and China.
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