Turmoil in Ethiopia

[Ravenlocke]

MenchOsint

Interesting development in Ethiopia (which is currently controlled by a pro-Israel/UAE regime)

Serving as a UAE-supplied weapons' hub for the RSF militia in Sudan, things could change quickly in the East African country.

**Tigrayan forces oppose the UAE-backed RSF militia.

https://x.com/MenchOsint/status/2102666520908149012

[Ravenlocke]

Al Jazeera Breaking News

Ethiopian President Taye Atske Selassie warned the UN General Assembly of “forces of destruction and mayhem” as Tigray rebels joined other rebel groups to seize airports and target government positions in northern Ethiopia, triggering fears of a renewed civil war

https://x.com/AJENews/status/2102860148125413398

[Ravenlocke]

khaled mahmoued

The U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia has confirmed reports that Tigray forces have taken control of the airports in Mekelle, Axum and Shire, and warned U.S. citizens against traveling to Tigray and Afar.

According to the latest developments on the ground, the Tigray Defense Forces have made significant advances in northern Ethiopia, with reports that they have seized control of the three airports, while fighting has spread to areas of the Afar and Amhara regions.

The developments reflect an expansion of the confrontation with government forces, although they do not, at this stage, indicate the collapse of the Ethiopian military or the loss of its control over the region as a whole.

https://x.com/khaledmahmoued1/status...25240388587755

[Ravenlocke]

FL360aero

AVIATION & SECURITY ALERT: Ethiopian Airlines Suspends Flights to Tigray Region Following Airport Takeover

✈️ Operational Impact:

• Ethiopian Airlines has officially halted all scheduled operations to key airports in northern Ethiopia, including Mekelle (MQX), Axum (AXU), and Shire (SHC).

• The operational halt follows reports from local residents and security officials confirming that Tigrayan forces seized control of Alula Aba Nega Airport (MQX) in Mekelle overnight from federal police forces.

⚠️ Context & Strategic Significance:

• Security Escalation: The airport takeover comes just days after the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) announced a new alliance with six other armed groups across Ethiopia aimed at removing the federal government.

• Fragile Peace at Risk: The situation raises severe concerns about the collapse of the 2022 Pretoria Peace Agreement, which formally ended a two-year conflict (2020–2022) that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

🔍 Travel Advisory: Passengers traveling to or within northern Ethiopia are advised to check directly with Ethiopian Airlines for itinerary updates, as no timeline for operational resumption has been established.

#AviationNews #Mekelle #FlightDisruption #AviationSafety

https://x.com/fl360aero/status/2102747266469580800

[Ravenlocke]

Ataf Mohamed عطاف محمد

Sep 20
Translated from Arabic
🚨 7 Armed Factions Unite to Topple Abiy Ahmed's Regime in Ethiopia

💥 Seven opposition groups and armed factions from various regions and ethnicities in Ethiopia have announced the formation of a unified front under the name (Ethiopian Forces Alliance for Survival). This marks an unprecedented step that transcends historical disputes and bloody armed conflicts between Ethiopia's components.

🎯 The alliance's goal is clear and direct: to overthrow the Prosperity Party government led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and establish an inclusive transitional administration to manage the country's affairs.

💥 Who does this broad alliance comprise? A heavy military and political bloc covering most of Ethiopia's geography (Amhara, Oromia, Tigray, Somali, Afar, and Benishangul-Gumuz) and they are:
🎯 Fano Movement (Amhara Region)
🎯 Oromo Liberation Army
🎯 Tigray People's Liberation Front
🎯 Ogaden National Liberation Front
🎯 Afar Unified National Revolutionary Front
🎯 Benishangul People's Liberation Movement
🎯 Gumuz People's Democratic Movement

💥 These forces have succeeded in setting aside national differences and previous armed clashes to agree on a single goal: that the continuation of the federal government's policies poses an existential threat to Ethiopia.

🚨The new alliance holds Abiy Ahmed's government fully responsible for the comprehensive security breakdown, the expansion of civil wars, the worsening of humanitarian crises and poverty, and the sharp decline in rights, freedoms, and the rule of law.

https://x.com/atafmohamed3/status/2101780110097674399

[Ravenlocke]

Sovereign Media

Long-standing tensions in northern Ethiopia have reignited into open warfare as Tigrayan rebels seized control of key regional airports and clashed with federal troops in the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions.

According to Getachew Reda, an adviser to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) has “launched an all-out offensive against government positions in Afar and Amhara”.

However, Tigray’s regional government said that its fighters have entered a “defensive war” against federal troops.

The TPLF dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades before Ahmed took office in 2018.

Ethiopian Airlines confirmed the suspension of flights to airports in Mekelle, Shire, and Axum “due to the current situation”.

The renewed hostilities threaten to unravel the Pretoria Peace Agreement, which ended a war that lasted from 2020 to 2022 that the African Union estimates claimed 600,000 lives.

While an uneasy calm persisted following the accord, clashes resumed late last year.

The escalation comes following a major announcement three days earlier when the TPLF joined a seven-group military alliance named the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival aiming to overthrow Abiy Ahmed.

The alliance includes the Amhara Fano National Movement, a coalition of factions which since 2023 has fought federal forces in Amhara region - the region which was the historic core of the Ethiopian Empire, providing its ruling dynasties and official language.

The coalition also includes the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), which since 2018 has fought federal forces in Oromia, the region that Abiy Ahmed is from.

Four smaller groups – the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), the Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (Ugugumo), the Benishangul Peoples’ Liberation Movement and the Gumuz Peoples’ Democratic Movement – comprise the remainder.

As multiple insurgencies challenge Addis Ababa on several fronts, the latest territorial seizures and airport closures have heightened fears of a full-scale return to nationwide conflict

https://x.com/sov_media/status/2103175294253224204

[Ravenlocke]

Addis Standard

News: #Ethiopia army chief accuses foreign powers of ‘pushing, supporting and supplying’ new armed alliance

Birhanu said Ethiopia's current security challenges were part of a broader strategy by what he described as the country's “historical” and “contemporary” adversaries, who, he alleged, were no longer capable of confronting Ethiopia through direct military invasion.

He alleged that Eritrea, which he referred to as “Shaebia,” acts as an intermediary between external powers and armed groups inside Ethiopia, claiming that the TPLF and Eritrea could not independently confront the federal government.

“Neither #Shaebia nor the #TPLF can achieve anything alone - even if combined - unless pushed, supported, and supplied by #Sudan, #Egypt, and powers beyond,” Birhanu said.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=59642

https://x.com/addisstandard/status/2103520255351869442

[Ravenlocke]

ACLED

Violence continues in Ethiopia’s #Tigray —and former enemies are now fighting together.

@CNN
draws on ACLED data showing this week’s escalation follows nearly 2 months of smaller clashes, after fighting between Tigrayan & federal forces began near Sudan’s border on 1 Aug.

https://x.com/ACLEDINFO/status/2103446998967853280

ACLED

There are two things to keep an eye on in #Ethiopia.

First, the TPLF is now allied with Eritrea, raising concerns over access to arms. Second, the Red Sea sits in the background of what is happening, with Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia all part of a wider contest over control in the area.


https://x.com/ACLEDINFO/status/2103506688183599556

ACLED

Northern Ethiopia’s war is opening on multiple fronts. Clashes have spread across the Tigray-Amhara border, into Afar and towards western #Tigray, while repeated drone strikes have been reported across Tigray and north #Amhara. More: https://bit.ly/46FQ32H

https://x.com/ACLEDINFO/status/2103545065326985218

[Ravenlocke]

Ataf Mohamed عطاف محمد

Translated from Arabic
🚨 Abiy Ahmed's regime cuts off communications services in the Tigray region.. and the armed opposition is turning to Starlink service

💥 Abiy Ahmed's regime has suspended communications services in the Tigray region, coinciding with the outbreak of widespread military confrontations.

🎯 Ethio Telecom has halted communications in the Tigray region. Ethio Telecom and Safaricom are the two companies providing communications services in the region, with Safaricom's services also experiencing near-total disruption.
💥 The armed opposition (TPLF) is currently turning to satellite internet service via Starlink.

🎯 It is recalled that during the previous war that broke out between the Tigray regional forces and the federal forces in Ethiopia in 2020, the region's communications remained cut off for more than two years

https://x.com/atafmohamed3/status/2103522077487534159

[Ravenlocke]

EritreanPost 🇪🇷🇸🇴🇩🇯🇸🇩🇪🇬
@eritrean_post
Sudan 🇸🇩 could cut Ethiopia’s Lifeline to the RSF terrorists by Backing Ethiopia’s Opposition

Ethiopia arms, trains, and funds the RSF terrorists . Together with the RSF, it has enabled drone strikes on Sudan.

Sudan should therefore take this opportunity to supply money, fuel, and arms to all members of the Ethiopian opposition alliance of survival: Fano, TPLF, OLA, Afar fighters, ONLF, Gumuz fighters, Benishangul fighters, and the Sidama SNLF.

Sudan needs to cut the RSF supply chain from Ethiopia by keeping Ethiopia busy with war inside its own country.

Ethiopian ruler Abiy Ahmed might then be overthrown by that opposition alliance.

Without Ethiopia’s support, the RSF would have lost the war two years ago. Today they have a Blue Nile front because of Ethiopia and because of Ethiopian and UAE money, training, weapons, and logistical support.

Removing the Ethiopian threat would remove the threat posed by the RSF.
@sudan_war

@SudanTrends

@SudanTribune_EN

@SudaneseEcho

@SUNA_AGENCY

@waladkosti

@MohanadElbalal

@BoulisiYousuf

@AligidirEritrea

@EGYOSINT

https://x.com/eritrean_post/status/2103562876363628731

[Ravenlocke]

MFA Russia 🇷🇺

🎙 #Zakharova on the escalation in Northern Ethiopia:

❗️ We call on the parties to observe the ceasefire & strictly comply with existing settlement agreements.

We urge external actors to refrain from interfering in Ethiopia’s internal affairs.

https://t.me/MFARussia/32384

https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2103825762658979861