Even as Ethiopia’s warring sides attend their first formal peace talks in a devastating two-year conflict, witnesses in the country’s embattled Tigray region tell The Associated Press that forces from neighboring Eritrea are killing some civilians and looting as they and allied Ethiopian forces head for the regional capital.

With internet and telephone access to the region cut off, and independent journalists barred from Tigray, observers say it is increasingly hard to reach people for accounts of the fighting that erupted again in August after a monthslong lull. The United States now estimates hundreds of thousands of people could have been killed in the war marked by abuses on all sides as fears grow the conflict has reached its deadliest phase.

The AP spoke with witnesses from the towns of Shire, Axum and Adwa, where Ethiopian and allied forces are present as they battle Tigray forces. All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. It is not clear how many civilians have been killed in recent weeks.

An aid worker from Axum who relocated to Shire this week fearing for his life said civilians were being killed by Eritrean forces there since at least Sunday.