Tigray People’s Liberation Front, (TPLF), stated that it had decided to withdraw fighters from all Amhara and Afar areas.

It stated that it had made the decision to allow for peaceful resolution of its conflict with the government.

This conflict has created a huge humanitarian crisis with no international mediation efforts.

Although it is not clear when Lalibela was retaken by the military, Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen Hassen visited Amhara on Sunday.

Lalibela is a famous place for its rock-hewn churches that date back to the 12th and the 13th Centuries. It was made a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1978.

Since August, the town has been in multiple hands. The fighting has caused severe damage to the airport.

The government claimed that its troops had retaken other towns, including Weldiya, on Saturday.

After being forced to abandon its plans to move on Addis Ababa, the TPLF is now withdrawing its fighters from Tigray.

Although it claimed that the withdrawals were part “essential modifications”, it didn’t confirm that it had pulled out from Lalibela or Weldiya.

Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, has been at the frontlines leading the fightback against TPLF. Airstrikes also hit the group.

Many thousands of people were killed, millions left homeless, and almost 10 million are in dire need of food assistance.

After a huge fallout over Mr Abiy’s 2018 political reforms, fighting broke out between the TPLF and government troops a year back

The federal government was dominated by the TPLF for over 25 years. They now control most of Tigray.