As fears of a return to conflict mount in Ethiopia, passenger flights between the capital and cities in the northern Tigray region have been halted. There have been reports of fighting between the federal army and Tigray fighters in western Tigray. There are also said to have been new military movements in southern Tigray. The region remains a source of disagreement, but the government says it intends to resolve it through a referendum. According to an African Union official, some 600,000 people lost their lives during the Tigray conflict.