Ethiopian army kills 15 members of Tigray's forces and captures 8

The Ethiopian Army reported on Sunday that it had killed 15 members of the former ruling party in the Tigray region and also captured eight others, according to state television.  

The state-owned Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation said, quoting a brigadier general from the Ethiopian National Defence Force, that among those captured was Abay Weldu, the former president of the region. He was also a former president of the area's ruling party. Furthermore, among the dead was the former deputy police commissioner of the region, it was added.

The government of Ethiopia's prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, declared victory on 28 November after a month of fighting in its conflict with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), a political party that previously governed the province. But the clashes continue. 

The fugitive leaders of the TPLF had sworn to continue the fight from the mountains. After the army said on Friday that the founding member of the TPLF, Sebhat Nega, had been captured, the latest announcement about the dead and captured has been broadcast. He was also transferred to the capital of Addis Ababa, according to the state television.

Abay Weldu, the captured former president of the TPLF, presided over the region for eight years from 2018. He was later replaced by the current leader of the front, Debretsion Gebremichael. Abay was also the party's president from 2012 to 2017, and was later succeeded by Debretsion.

State television reported that, in addition, Abraham Tekeste, the former vice president of the region was captured. He had been finance minister in the federal government from 2016 to 2018. 

Air strikes and battles since the beginning of November in Tigray are believed to have killed thousands of people. Fighting continues in some parts and more than two million people need help, the UN said.

Last month, the Ethiopian Army killed 42 armed men accused of participating in a massacre in the western region of Benishangul-Gumuz, reported Fana TV, a state affiliate.