Ethiopia’s government accused rebellious Tigrayan forces on November 1 of killing 100 youths in the key town of Kombolcha, as the US expressed concern about Tigrayan advances a year into the fighting, Qazet.az informs referring to Reuters.

There was no immediate response from Tigrayan forces led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) who have been fighting the government in a mounting conflict that has destabilized Africa’s second most populous nation.

On October 31, a TPLF spokesperson said its fighters had pushed south to take Kombolcha and its airport. If confirmed, it would be the closest the TPLF has got to the capital since pushing into Tigray’s neighboring region of Amhara in July.

The Government Communication Service said on Twitter, “The terrorist group TPLF has summarily executed more than 100 youth residents of Kombolcha in areas it has infiltrated.”

War broke out a year ago between federal troops and the TPLF, which dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly 30 years before Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was appointed in 2018.

The conflict has killed thousands of civilians and forced more than 2.5 million people to flee their homes.