Fighting resumes along border of Ethiopia's northern Tigray,

Fighting resumes along border of Ethiopia's northern Tigray, residents tell Reuters "I am hearing sound of heavy weapons starting from this morning,"said a farmer in Kobo area."Last week, I saw Amhara special forces nd Fano heading to the front by bus."

 The fighting is a major blow to hopes for peace talks between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the party that controls Tigray.Fighting between forces from Ethiopia's rebellious northern region of Tigray and central government forces has erupted around the town of Kobo, residents and both sides said on Wednesday, ending a months-long ceasefire.

Both sides have blamed each other for the outbreak of fighting.

"At 5am today (the TPLF) has attacked on the Eastern Front; from Bisober, Zobel and Tekulshe direction. By carrying out such measure, it has effectively broken the ceasefire," the government's communications service said in a statement.

The military command of the Tigrayan forces accused the government of violating the ceasefire, saying in a statement it believed the southern attack was a diversion and their forces expected a major attack from the west.

Three residents reporting hearing heavy weapons since early morning. They also said there had been movement of Ethiopian soldiers, Amhara special forces and volunteer Fano militia in the past two days.

They said they did not know who had started the fighting. Reuters could not immediately get information on the movements of Tigrayan forces. Telephone connections inside Tigray have been down for more than a year.

Ethiopian government spokesman Legesse Tulu, military spokesman Colonel Getnet Adane, Amhara regional spokesman Gizachew Muluneh and the prime minister's spokeswoman Billene Seyoum did not respond to requests for comment.

The fighting in Africa's second most populous nation has displaced millions of people, pushed parts of Tigray into famine and killed thousands of civilians.

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