ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ethiopia’s national carrier canceled flights to and from the troubled northern region of Tigray, as fears grow of renewed fighting between federal troops and regional forces.
For a second day, Ethiopian Airlines wasn't flying to Tigray on Friday, with customers receiving messages that cited “unplanned circumstances.”
The carrier issued no public statement. Ethiopian authorities also didn't comment.
A high-ranking official in the security service told The Associated Press on Thursday that the suspension of flight services to Tigray was “linked to a new conflict between federal troops and the regional forces.”
The official, who wasn't authorized to speak to a reporter and requested anonymity, said that “drones are hovering in the sky and there are military movements in western and southern Tigray."
With flights suspended, some people are starting to flee Tigray by car.
Solomon Tadesse in Mekele, the Tigrayan capital, said that he arrived early Friday to buy a bus ticket to Addis Ababa, the federal capital. But he found out that bookings were at full capacity and he won't be able to depart until Tuesday.
“I don’t want to face the hardships I went through in (the) past war,” he said.
Tensions have been rising in Tigray three years after Ethiopia's federal government signed a peace deal to end the war there. The 2022 peace agreement ended two years of fighting that left an estimated hundreds of thousands of people dead.
Now, Tigray’s rulers accuse the federal government of “openly breaching” that agreement after a drone strike hit its forces last year. And Ethiopia's government accuses Eritrea of mobilizing and funding armed groups in Tigray, which shares a border with Eritrea.
Some residents of Mekele lined up for hours on Thursday and Friday to withdraw cash from ATMs or purchase goods, fearing a return to armed conflict.
“I have been waiting the whole day to withdraw cash from the bank, but halfway I was told the bank has run out of banknotes,” said Bereket Ghessese in Mekele.
Genet Berhane, a resident of the Tigrayan town of Adigrat, said that she was lining up outside a commercial bank on Friday.
“I came here at 5:30 early in the morning to withdraw banknotes. I am still waiting,” she said by phone. “The ATMs have run out of cash."
Even in Addis Ababa, some said that they were worried.
“This time Ethiopia deserves peace,” resident Gizachew Belay said. “No one will benefit from war.”
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has presented a forceful stance in recent months as his landlocked country seeks greater access to the sea through Eritrea.
Ethiopia lost sovereign access to the Red Sea when Eritrea seceded in 1993 after decades of guerrilla warfare.
Abiy’s rhetoric has at times been seen as provocative. In September, he said that Ethiopia's loss of sea access through Eritrea’s secession was a “mistake” that “will be corrected.”
The bulk of Ethiopia’s trade now goes now through Djibouti, incurring high port fees.
Eritrea and Ethiopia initially made peace after Abiy came to power in 2018, winning a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in that direction. He then teamed up with Eritrea for the devastating war against the Tigray People's Liberation Front, or TPLF, the group that administers the region.
This time, Eritrea could team up with the TPLF against Ethiopian federal troops.
In May, Ethiopian electoral authorities deregistered the TPLF, accusing it of failing to hold a general assembly. TPLF said that the move was a violation of the 2022 deal.
In June, Eritrea accused Ethiopia of having a “long-brewing war agenda” aimed at seizing its Red Sea ports.
Ethiopia recently said that Eritrea was “actively preparing to wage war against it.”
A political and security alliance between the TPLF and President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea apparently ”is in the making," said Kjetil Tronvoll, a professor of peace and conflict studies at the University of Oslo.
“The potential war theater is thus radically changed from what we saw in (the) 2020-2022 war, (when) Tigray was effectively surrounded by enemy forces," Tronvoll said. "This time, they will potentially have an open supply line and a support base provided by Eritrea, in addition to likely troops reinforcements.”
Follow AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
FILE - Ethiopian Airlines planes are parked at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Monday Feb. 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz overcame injury to fend off Alexander Zverev in an epic, momentum-swinging five-setter Friday, becoming the youngest man in the Open era to reach the finals of all four Grand Slam events.
At 22, he’s aiming to be the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam.
He reached his first Australian Open final the hard way, winning 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (4), 7-5 in 5 hours, 27 minutes. It was the longest match of the tournament so far, and the longest semifinal ever at the Australian Open — surpassing the 2009 classic between Rafael Nadal and Fernando Verdasco.
That's despite him being two points away in the third set from a semifinal victory in a tournament where he hadn’t dropped a set through five rounds.
After a medical timeout for treatment on his upper right leg and massages on the same area at two changeovers, Alcaraz's footwork wasn't up to his usual elite standard.
He made it through the third and fourth sets and was behind in the fifth after dropping serve in the first game. But he kept up the pressure and didn’t break back until Zverev was serving for the match in the 10th. He won the last four games.
The top-ranked Alcaraz will next face either two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner or 10-time Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic, who is bidding for an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam singles crown. The marathon afternoon match delayed the start of the night semifinal.
Asked how he was able to recover despite being so close to defeat, Alcaraz just said he kept “believing, believing, all the time.”
“I was struggling in the middle of the third set. You know, physically it was one of the most demanding matches that I have ever played," he said. "But I’ve been in these situations, I’ve been in these kind of matches before, so I knew what I had to do.
“I had to put my heart into the match. I think I did it. I fought until the last ball. Extremely proud (of) myself.”
Alcaraz had only lost one of his previous 15 matches that went to five sets. Zverev had a good record in that department, too, at 23-14. But this was the longest match of his career, and he said he ran out of steam.
When he led by two sets, Alcaraz appeared to be in the kind of form that won him the U.S. Open last year and has helped him evenly split the last eight majors with Sinner.
In the ninth game of the third, Alcaraz started limping and having problems with his upper right leg. After holding for 5-4, he took a medical timeout in the changeover. It may have been cramp, but he rubbed the inside of his thigh and called for the trainer.
Zverev was demonstrably upset, taking it up with a tournament supervisor, when his rival was given the three-minute break for treatment.
“He was cramping, so normally you can’t take a medical timeout for cramping,” Zverev said. “What can I do? I didn’t like it, but it’s not my decision.
"But, to be honest, I don’t want to talk about this right now, because I think this is one of the best battles there ever was in Australia. It doesn’t deserve to be the topic now."
No. 3 Zverev, the 2025 runner-up, retained his composure despite Alcaraz’s obvious discomfort and the crowd on Rod Laver Arena being firmly behind the Spaniard.
He won the last four points of the third set and then the tiebreaker, and was in front for the entire fourth set. More than four hours had elapsed when the match went to a fifth set — the first five-setter on the center court in 2026.
Alcaraz dropped serve in the opening game but hung with Zverev, getting five breakpoint chances without being able to convert.
In the sixth game Alcaraz sprinted across court to track down a drop shot and slid at full pace for an angled forehand winner. The crowd went crazy, and Alcaraz was back.
Alcaraz finally converted a break when Zverev was serving for the match at 5-4.
After holding serve and piling all the pressure back on his rival, Alcaraz clinched it on his first match point when Zverev netted. He let his racket slip and flopped on the court, lying on his back. By the time he got up, Zverev had come around the net for a congratulatory hug.
“I’m just really happy to have the chance to play my first final here in Melbourne," Alcaraz said. “It is something that I was pursuing a lot, chasing a lot, having the chance to fight for the title.”
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates after defeating Alexander Zverev of Germany in their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain is congratulated by Alexander Zverev, right, of Germany following their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangakra)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates after defeating Alexander Zverev of Germany in their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangakra)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates after defeating Alexander Zverev of Germany in their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain plays a forehand return to Alexander Zverev of Germany during their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
Alexander Zverev of Germany plays a backhand return to Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangakra)
Alexander Zverev of Germany gesturers to a tournament official during his semifinal match against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain receives treatment during his semifinal match against Alexander Zverev of Germany at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangakra)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain talks to his team during his semifinal match against o Alexander Zverev of Germany at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
