Second air strike hits capital of Ethiopia's Tigray region killing six – hospital official

A man injured in an air strike receives treatment at the Ayder Referral Hospital, in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray region, Ethiopia September 14, 2022. Photo: REUTERS.

A man injured in an air strike receives treatment at the Ayder Referral Hospital, in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray region, Ethiopia September 14, 2022. Photo: REUTERS.

Published Sep 14, 2022

Share

Six people died in an air strike in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia's northern Tigray region, on Wednesday, a hospital official said.

Five bodies were taken to Mekelle hospital, while another was taken to Ayder hospital along with 10 wounded people, said Fasika Amdeslasie, a surgeon at Ayder, after what he described as a drone strike.

Ethiopian military spokesperson Colonel Getnet Adane and government spokesperson Legesse Tulu did not respond to requests for comment.

Tigrayan forces have been battling the Ethiopian military and its allies since late 2020, with a ceasefire earlier this year shattered last month as fighting flared again.

Five of the victims died on the way to Mekelle's Ayder Referral Hospital, said the hospital's CEO, Kibrom Gebreselassie. The other died at the scene of the strike in the Midre Genet neighbourhood, Kibrom said, citing the city's emergency co-ordinator.

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which governs Tigray, said on Sunday it was ready for another truce and would accept an AU-led peace process. Ethiopia's government has not yet responded to the offer.

Amdeslasie said most of Wednesday's victims were hit in a second strike after people had gathered to assist victims of a first hit.

Kibrom said the hospital was struggling to save the wounded because of supply shortages caused by nearly two years of war.

“There is no oxygen for the operation. I don't know what to do. Am I to lose every salvageable victim because there is no oxygen or medicine?” he said.

On Tuesday, one person was wounded when air strikes hit Mekelle University and a local TV station, the station and a hospital official said.

The conflict has killed thousands, uprooted tens of thousands, shattered infrastructure, and worsened hunger in the already impoverished region.