The International Crisis Group (ICG) posted on 1 July 2021 a 36-minute podcast titled "A Dramatic Turn in Ethiopia's Tigray War" with Richard Atwood and Naz Modirzadeh talking with William Davison, ICG's Ethiopia expert.
Significant territorial gains over the past week in central Tigray by the Tigray Defense Forces (TDF) resulted in the withdrawal of central government forces from the capital region. Eritrean forces retreated towards the Eritrean border. Amhara militia have consolidated authority in western Tigray, which Davison believes will probably be contested next by the TDF. There has been strong popular support for the TDF. The next step by the central government may be a blockade of Tigray Region, which will be opposed by the international community that is trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Tigray. The international community will also push to open communications, essential services, and banking in Tigray Region.
