A senior commander of Tigrayan forces in northern Ethiopia has vowed to keep fighting until a blockade on the region is lifted and the federal government accepts its conditions for a ceasefire.

General Tsadkan Gebretensae told the BBC that Tigrayan fighters wouldn't leave the neighbouring regions of Afar and Amhara until they achieved their objectives.

He said Ethiopian federal forces and Eritrean troops remained in Tigray, but that they would be wiped out if they didn't leave voluntarily.

The general said the future of Tigray would be decided in a referendum by its people once a political settlement had been reached with Addis Ababa.

The nine-month war has led to famine conditions for hundreds of thousands of people.