Ethiopian Airlines will resume flights to the capital of the war-torn northern region of Tigray starting on Wednesday, the first commercial flights to Tigray in about 18 months, the airline said in a statement.
The announcement comes a day after a delegation of government officials and heads of public enterprises visited Mekelle to discuss the implementation of last month’s peace agreement.
The agreement, which included promises to restore services, ended two years of fighting between the Ethiopian federal government and allies against the Tigrayan forces, which have killed thousands and displaced millions.
“The resumption of these flights will enable families to reunite, facilitate the restoration of commercial activities, stimulate tourist flow and bring many more opportunities which will serve the society,” Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tasew, who was part of the delegation to Mekelle, said in a statement.
A travel agent in Addis Ababa told Reuters that the first Mekelle-bound flight was fully booked within hours of the announcement.
Almost the entire region is now connected to the national power grid and telecoms services have been restored in 27 towns there, state media reported on Tuesday.
