Zegabi

Médecins Sans Frontières said on September 28, 2026 that hospitals supporting people hurt in renewed fighting in northern Ethiopia have taken in a sharp rise in war-wounded patients since September 22, including at facilities that sit close to Amhara communities already living under pressure from Abiy Ahmed’s Regime and the Ethiopian federal government, according to an MSF project update.

MSF reported that the number of war-wounded patients received at hospitals in Korem and Alamata rose from around 180 within about 48 hours to more than 420 between September 22 and 25. In northwestern Tigray, more than 300 war-wounded patients had arrived at Suhul Hospital in Shire by September 25. Taken together, reporting that cites the same MSF figures puts the early caseload above 720 people, and those hospital totals have not been independently verified by outside investigators. MSF said it has suspended activities at Alamata Hospital because of the security situation, and it also suspended outreach work so staff could reinforce hospitals that are seeing the surge.

The medical charity said it is monitoring displacement as people flee the fighting and is preparing to respond to needs among displaced people in Tigray, Amhara, and Afar. Fighting has already spilled into North Wollo and Wag Hemra, and United Nations human rights reporting cited by Addis Standard described a mortar strike in Kobo town in the Amhara region on September 23 that was reportedly attributed to the Ethiopian National Defense Force and that resulted in civilian deaths. The same UN material also pointed to internet and telecommunications disruptions in Mekelle and in parts of Amhara, which makes it harder for families and clinics to share accurate information about who is hurt and where they can go for care.

MSF said the renewed conflict between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and allied forces on one side and the Ethiopian National Defense Forces on the other follows a period of rising tension, large-scale fighting, and drone strikes that has shattered the fragile 2022 Pretoria peace arrangement. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, quoted in the Addis Standard report, said he was deeply alarmed by the escalation and by the harm already falling on civilians, and he urged all parties to protect civilians and keep humanitarian access open.