Afar Sources Dismissed Reports of ENDF Advance into Eritrea; Shelling and Troop Movements Reported Near Adigrat Today

October 12, 2026

Local sources in Ethiopia’s Afar Region who spoke with UMD Media have dismissed earlier reports that Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) troops crossed into Eritrea and captured Daba Sima, near the Bure front.

Sources in Elidar Woreda, located in Awsi Rasu (Zone 1) of the Afar Region, including the areas of Diche Oto, Bure and Manda, said concerns over a possible military confrontation remain high. However, they maintained that ENDF mechanized forces are not even close to the Bure frontline itself.

Their accounts contradict earlier information provided to UMD Media by an Ethiopian federal government source claiming that ENDF troops entered Eritrean territory on Sunday, October 11, following mechanized fighting.

Meanwhile, a source in Adigrat told UMD Media that today, Monday, October 12, shelling was heard north of the city in the direction of Farsi for approximately one hour, between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Following the shelling, a large number of soldiers reportedly moved in the evening in the direction of Zalambessa, a border town approximately 160 kilometres from Eritrea’s capital, Asmara, that has remained under Eritrean military occupation for years.