ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — The head of Ethiopia’s army suggested neighboring Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt were supporting rebel troops who have captured several strategic towns in renewed fighting in the north, drawing denials as the threat of a widening regional conflict grew on Monday.
Field Marshal Birhanu Jula, chief of general staff of the Ethiopian National Defense Force, on Friday accused Eritrea of mobilizing financial support for the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF.
The TPLF and Ethiopian federal troops waged war between November 2020 and November 2022, when a peace deal was signed in Pretoria, South Africa. A caretaker administration seen as loyal to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was installed in Mekelle, the Tigray capital. But tensions remained, with the TPLF maneuvering for political control in Mekelle.
TPLF fighters over the weekend captured the key strategic town of Erebti in the northern Afar region, a commander told The Associated Press on Monday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorize to speak to media.
An official with the Tigray Peace Force, a breakaway faction of Tigray rebels now allied with federal forces in Afar, confirmed that the rebels took control of the town, although he denied that heavy fighting had taken place.
Doctors Without Borders, better known by its French acronym MSF, on Monday said there had been a surge in the number of wounded receiving treatment in the north.
The number of patients in the Korem and Alamata hospitals rose from around 180 to more than 420 in 48 hours. MSF said 300 wounded had arrived at northeastern Suhul Hospital last week.
Ethiopian federal authorities accused the TPLF of seeking to build an alliance with neighboring Eritrea to destabilize Ethiopia. Abiy’s push for sovereign access to the Eritrean seaport of Assab has reignited tensions with Eritrea, which shares a border with Tigray. Abiy also angered Somalia by trying to negotiate access to the sea via the territory of Somaliland.
Eritrea accused Ethiopia of shifting blame for the ongoing conflict. Eritrea’s Information Minister Yemane Meskel wrote on X that Ethiopia’s pursuit of access to the sea had rattled Eritrea and Somalia, while its move to host militia training in support of Sudan's military had put Ethiopia at odds with its neighbors.
A spokesperson for the Sudanese armed forces in a statement rejected Ethiopia's accusations, adding that Ethiopia was offering support to militias fighting the Sudanese military, an apparent reference to the Rapid Support Forces, which have been battling Sudan's army since 2023.
Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopian forces against the TPLF in the 2020-2022 Tigray conflict. The civilian death toll was estimated by Ghent University researchers at 500,000, including from violence, famine and the collapse of health services.
People walk in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia's Tigray region, as fighting escalates with the central government, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo)
People walk in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia's Tigray region, as fighting escalates with the central government, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo)
FILE - Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) fighters attend an orientation session in western Oromia, Ethiopia, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo, File)
CAIRO (AP) — Mediators are still working with Iran and the United States on brokering a deal to end the fighting and open the Strait of Hormuz — even after U.S. President Donald Trump publicly rejected Iran's latest proposal, three regional officials and a senior U.S. official told The Associated Press.
The indirect talks were expected to resume on Monday and come as the conflict that's caused global economic damage and badly battered Iran enters its eighth month. Multiple efforts to allow safe shipping on one of the world's most crucial waterways have failed.
The officials divulged that the behind-the-scenes efforts continue even after Trump spurned an Iranian proposal to reopen the strait in a week if the U.S. agreed to lift its blockade of Iranian ports, release frozen Iranian assets and waive sanctions on Iranian oil sales, among other conditions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, however, remained in New York after last week's gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly. He said he was awaiting “definitive” word from mediators of Trump's rejection. Qatar has been mediating.
Despite Trump’s often bellicose rhetoric, he remains open to pursuing a non-military resolution to the conflict if one can be achieved, said the senior U.S. official.
But the official stressed there's a measure of doubt about whether Iran can be persuaded to ultimately meet Trump's conditions for a deal.
The officials were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity about the behind-the-scenes diplomatic negotiations.
Two of the officials speaking to the AP confirmed that mediators are working with both sides on a proposal that would include reopening the strait and lifting the U.S. blockade, and then removing sanctions.
According to the draft text being discussed, the strait would reopen in accordance with a separate deal that Iran has been discussing with Oman, on the other side of the strait, and it would include no tolls — something Tehran has pursued. That deal seeks to temporarily manage shipping traffic on what was seen as an international waterway before the war.
Despite Trump’s public comments, the U.S. has not officially rejected the current proposal, indicating that his remarks may have been a negotiating tactic, according to the officials.
One regional official said the U.S. is seeking Iranian concessions on its nuclear program, including allowing inspectors to enter the country. Under the Memorandum of Understanding the two sides signed in June that collapsed within days, Iran's nuclear program was meant to be discussed over a 60-day period.
One official reported positive signals coming from both sides. A second reported “slight progress” over the weekend. The third said mediators are still trying “to soften” the positions of both sides.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While Iran’s latest proposal echoes the June deal, a key difference is speed.
Araghchi told a closed-door meeting on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly last week that Tehran had pitched the deal as benefiting Trump in the midterm elections. Araghchi later told journalists that “the seven-day timeline will start as soon as the United States accepts this plan.”
Both the U.S. and Iran have been hurting economically — the U.S. from high oil prices as Iran attacks ships on the strait, and Tehran from the naval blockade and a growing number of U.S. sanctions that bottle up its oil sales. Brent crude, the international standard, is above $108.
For months, the two sides have been trying to outlast the other, while regional countries endure missile and drone attacks as Tehran claims to target U.S. military assets in the region.
Reflecting Iran's impatience, a rare statement on Monday attributed to the theocracy's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei noted the “painful blows” that enemy forces have received near the strait. “Before long, the Arabian Sea, too, will be rid of them,” the statement added.
Tehran's latest proposal again sought to end the fighting on all fronts, including in Lebanon. But a new front has emerged in recent weeks as Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are now perched on another crucial waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. That has further pressured global energy markets.
Iran argues that the Houthis have their own demands, and that their conflict with neighboring Saudi Arabia is separate from the U.S.-Iran war, but Iranian officials said they are willing to help in finding a settlement between the Houthis and the Saudis, one of the officials said.
Lee reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Collin Binkley in Washington and AP Middle East editor Victoria Eastwood contributed to this report.
AP STANDARDS: The AP only uses anonymous sources when the information is vital to the news report and not opinion or speculation. The information must be unavailable except under the conditions of anonymity imposed by the source. The source must be reliable, in a position to have accurate information and approved by news managers.
President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House after arriving on Marine One, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks to the media during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
