Tigray Region

In News

• Recently, airstrikes hit the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region in an ongoing internal armed conflict.

Tigray Region

• Tigray is the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia ( Africa’s second-most populous country).
• Tigray region is known for its mountainous terrains that have often helped the people protect their territory from invaders, such as the Greeks, the Turkish, and the Italians.

• It is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob and Kunama peoples.
• It is also known as Region 1 according to the federal constitution.
• Capital and largest city: Mekelle.
• Border Areas: Eritrea (North), Sudan (West), the Amhara Region (South), and the Afar Region (East and South East).

                                   Image Courtesy: VOA

Tigray War

• In early November 2020, the region and the Ethiopian federal government entered into conflict.
• The conflict escalated in September when Tigray held local elections in insubordination to the Ethiopian federal government. 
• These elections were considered “illegal” by the federal government, further leading to conflict with Tigray authorities.

Source: TH