Conflict erupted between local militias and national forces in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region this Wednesday, leading to disruptions in internet and telephone services across the area. Services from state-owned telecom operator Ethio Telecom have been completely cut off, while those from smaller private company Safaricom remain operational. Internet monitoring organization NetBlocks reported that network data indicated a sub-national level internet disruption in the northern Tigray region. Humanitarian workers stated that local residents rely on banks and mobile payment applications for transactions, and the service outage would have a "devastating" impact, especially as the region has already faced an eight-month cash shortage. The conflict has also triggered panic buying.