Ethiopian Airlines resumes flights into Tigray region

Ethiopian Airlines has resumed scheduled flights to Tigray’s capital, Mekele, as the result of a peace agreement signed between the federal government and Tigray officials in November.

The move came a day after a federal government delegation led by the speaker of Ethiopia’s parliament visited Mekele, paving the way for more engagement between the two sides that have fought a deadly war for two years in which hundreds of thousands of people have died.

“We are starting with a single flight per day for now, but we will increase it as telecom services are restored in the Tigray region,” Mesfin Tasew, the Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Airlines, told The Associated Press.

Mesfin said the resumption of flights by Africa’s largest airline to the region is expected to “enable families to reunite, facilitate the restoration of commercial activities, stimulate tourist flow and bring many more opportunities which will serve the society.”

The Tigray region had been largely cut off from the rest of the world during the two-year conflict, but communications are slowly resuming as phone lines start to be restored in parts of the region.

Ethiopia’s state-owned telecom provider, Ethio Telecom, also announced on Wednesday the resumption of its services to Mekele.