According to local media, after the Tigray Defence Forces took control of the city of Mekelle, forcing the government troops and officials to retreat, the head of the Tigray interim administration asked Addis Ababa to establish a ceasefire agreement and work on a political solution to the Tigray crisis.
"The government has announced an unconditional ceasefire that will last until the end of the farming season effective as of June 28, 2021," the federal government was cited as saying by the Addis Standard.
Fighting in the province of Tigray broke out in November 2020 after the Ethiopian government accused the local ruling party — the Tigray People's Liberation Front — of attacking a regional military base to steal weapons and arm an anti-government militia. The Tigray region has been occupied by the Ethiopian military since that time, resulting in clashes with rebels and heavy civilian losses.