Ethiopia said on Thursday it would expel seven senior UN officials for "meddling" in its affairs, ratcheting up worries over the humanitarian response in the war-torn and famine-threatened Tigray region.

The United States, Germany, France and other G7 countries called on Friday for an independent and transparent investigation into alleged human rights abuses during the conflict in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region.

Ethiopia's army plans to surround the rebel-held capital of Tigray region with tanks and may use artillery on the city to try to end a nearly three-week war, a military spokesman said on Sunday, urging civilians to save themselves.

Ethiopia said on Wednesday peacekeepers from its Tigray region serving in Somalia had been disarmed over a security issue, raising concerns over the forces' ability to fight al Qaeda-linked militants.

The leader of the Tigray region of Ethiopia on Sunday claimed responsibility for rocket strikes on the airport in neighbouring Eritrea's capital, a move that ratcheted up fears of a wider conflict in the Horn of Africa region

Ethiopian troops took an airport in the Tigray region during an offensive against local leaders defying Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's authority, state-affiliated TV said on Tuesday, as the African Union (AU) called for an end to bloodshed.

Nine million people risk displacement from the escalating conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region, the United Nations said, warning that the federal government's declaration of a state of emergency was blocking food and other aid.