Ethiopian Airline has resumed commercial flight to Tigray region after a two year war between the government of Ethiopia and Tigray people’s liberation front.
Early flight resumption witnessed families reuniting with their loved ones, relations and friends after a long time of seperation as a result of the war.
Hostilities amongst both parties came to a halt last month after an agreement was reached, leading to a return to constitutional order.
The return of commercial flight signals critical steps towards peace between the waring parties, as the country’s airlines has scheduled multiple regular flights to and from the region as flight needs increases.
The reintroduction of flights to and from Mekele is one of the many first steps towards peace in the region.
Mekele was connected to the national electricity grid on December 6th, the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, the country’s main bank, announced on December 19th that it was resuming operations in some towns, as telephone communications with the region are also being restored.
Things are looking up for the country’s constitutional order though the region of six million is still largely without electricity and phone line for the most part.
On 2 November, the government and Tigrayan rebels signed an agreement to end the war that has ravaged northern Ethiopia for two years.
The agreement provides for the disarmament of rebel forces, the re-establishment of federal authority in Tigray and the reopening of access and communications to the region, which has been cut off from the world since mid-2021.
The fighting began in November 2020, when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent the army to arrest Tigrayan leaders who had been challenging his authority for months and whom he accused of attacking federal military bases.
