Drone strike on Ethiopia's Tigray capital wounds 13: hospital official. [File, Standard]
A drone strike on the Tigrayan capital Mekelle wounded at least 13 people, including five children, on Thursday, a hospital official told AFP, amid fears Ethiopia's troubled northern region could be sliding back towards war.
Federal and Tigrayan forces have massed on either side of the northern state's border in recent months, with both sides accusing the other of attempting to start a new conflict, following the devastating 2020-2022 war that claimed at least 600,000 lives.
Amanuel Assefa, vice president of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which controls the state, told AFP the drone hit Mekelle early on Thursday.
"There was a drone strike today in the city. It targeted a residential area... I don't have details on casualties yet," he said.
An AFP journalist in Mekelle said residents had confirmed the strike.
"Thirteen people injured in a drone strike were brought to our hospital. Three of them sustained serious injuries," Birhanu Hailemariam, emergency ward coordinator at Ayder Referral Hospital, told AFP.