Operation Alula Aba Nega ( ti, ወፍሪ አሉላ አባ ነጋ, italic=no), commonly shortened to Operation Alula ( ti, ወፍሪ አሉላ, italic=no), was a

counter-offensive In the study of military tactics, a counter-offensive is a large-scale strategic offensive military operation, usually by forces that had successfully halted the enemy's offensive, while occupying defensive positions. The counter-offensive ...

during the

Tigray War The Tigray War; ; . was an armed conflict that lasted from 3 November 2020 to 3 November 2022. The war was primarily fought in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia between the Ethiopian federal government and Eritrea on one side, and the Tigray Peop ...

by the

Tigray Defense Forces The Tigray Defense Forces ( ti, ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ትግራይ, italic=no; TDF: ሓምት), colloquially ''Tigray Army'' () is a paramilitary rebel group in Tigray. It was founded by distant former generals of Ethiopia in 2020 t ...

against the

Ethiopian military The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) ( am, የኢፌዲሪ መከላከያ ሠራዊት, Ye’īfēdērī mekelakeya šerawīt, lit=FDRE Defense Force) is the military force of Ethiopia. Civilian control of the military is carried out t ...

and its allies in Tigray. The operation was named after Ethiopian general Ras Alula Aba Nega, who was of

Tigrayan Tigrayans ( ti, ተጋሩ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group indigenous to the Tigray Region of northern Ethiopia. They speak the Tigrinya language, an Afroasiatic language belonging to the Ethiopian Semitic branch. The daily life of Tigra ...

descent. The offensive was launched on 18 June 2021 and recaptured vast swaths of territory across central and eastern Tigray, including the regional capital of

Mekelle Mekelle ( ti, መቐለ, am, መቀሌ, mäqälle, mek’elē) or Mekele is a special zone and capital of the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Mekelle was formerly the capital of Enderta awraja in Tigray. It is located around north of the Ethiopi ...

Timeline

On 23 June, the

(TDF) shot down an

Ethiopian Air Force The Ethiopian Air Force (ETAF) () is the air service branch of the Ethiopian National Defence Force. The ETAF is tasked with protecting the national air space, providing support to ground forces, as well as assisting civil operations during nati ...

Lockheed C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally desig ...

cargo plane A cargo aircraft (also known as freight aircraft, freighter, airlifter or cargo jet) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is designed or converted for the carriage of cargo rather than passengers. Such aircraft usually do not incorporate passenger a ...

. On 28 June, the TDF took control of the regional capital of

after forcing ENDF troops to retreat. On 29 June, Eritrean soldiers withdrew from Shire, Axum and Adwa, allowing TDF forces to move in.

References

{{Ethiopia-stub 2021 in Ethiopia 2021 in international relations July 2021 events in Africa June 2021 events in Africa Battles of the Tigray War O Mekelle during the Tigray War