25/09/2026
Urgent News Release: Northern and Western Afar is in Conflict
After the prolonged political procrastination, conflict broke out the night of September 22nd 2026. This long-feared debacle is upon us all predicted now to affect 800,000 people, 400,000 of them having to displace for safety, figures reported from Disaster Risk Management Coordination Office, Afar Region. The northern Zone 2 is involved, all with the exception of Afdeera and Bidu. In the west, starting from Sifra going north on the Amhara to Tigray border, 4 woredas of Zone 4 are involved; the overall involvement strongly patterning the terrorizing experience of the 2021/22 civil war. See the map below
In the north, Daalol (marked Xallol), Barhale, Wasama and Konnaba are now utterly cut off, the combine force from Eritrea and Tigray pushing out government forces and now taking over the Zonal capital of Aba’ala town. While today, the town is reported calm, there is intense fighting between the government – supporters and Tigray’s TPLF in rugged hills between Aba’ala and Erebti as well on the grazing plain toward Magaale driving displacement into rural sites of Erebti district.
Magaale is apparently out of government control, displacement expected to come toward and into Erebti on its SE – as of 36 hours, there is no connection with the district, APDA having reached Magaale with supplementary food for malnourished mothers as well as animal feed 8 days ago.
From the west, long-range artillery is audible in from Amhara Region to Afar adjacent to Yallo, the 2nd market town of the Region. It appears evident TPLF is advancing south in eastern Amhara, possibly to reach Woldia adjacent to Sifra – almost identical conflict routes as in 2021/22.
The worst – case scenario will be if the TPLF tries to come through the Sifra to Mille road aiming as was before, to control the country’s import/ export route through Djibouti as well as wanting to cut through Erebti to Sardo to meet the same commercial road junction. This will cause wholesale displacement and loss. To date, there are no figures on displacement as people are coming by the hour, some caught between two frontlines.
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This emerging crisis is indeed double-trouble coming on the back of a relatively poor main rainy season, its hallmark already strong malnutrition and weakened herds especially in remote communities, El Nino the driver.
Yesterday, APDA sent what food could be scrounged with medicines and a health officer to Erebti. The next plan is to put a substantial mobile health team in to meet and work with displaced and displacing people. For this, APDA urgently needs food that can be eaten without cooking: dates and passo (a mixture of ground grains that does not require cooking) costing 13 USD to feed a person for 15 days: 3 kg dates; 5 kg passo. Currently, the organization anticipates upwards of 3,000 most-affected mothers with children who need this help.
The great advantage APDA has is that the organization development workers (health workers, community teachers, women extension workers and environment scouts) are in almost all sub-districts of these affected woredas/ districts, readily able to locate the displaced people and are aware of situational progress.
Having recently had the amazing generosity of support to tackle the causes of food insecurity through livelihood building, this crisis lands in the middle. However, APDA will use its determination and experience to limit the effects on the community wherever possible.
APDA is now again active on X: : and otherwise welcomely available for all communication.
AFAR PASTORALIST DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
QAFAR DACARSITTOH DADALIH EGLA
