The last time Ethiopia declared a state of emergency, the country was on the verge of implosion. It was November 2021, insurgents from the northern region of Tigray were marching towards the capital, Addis Ababa. Threatened, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had ended up going to the front himself, calling on all those who could to enlist. Tens of thousands of Tigrayans, suspected of supporting the rebellion, had been arrested.
While the country is still healing its wounds after two years of war, a new fratricidal conflict threatens to break out. Not in Tigray this time, but in the Amhara region, the second most populated in the country, with 25 million inhabitants. On Friday, August 4, the Ethiopian government declared a six-month state of emergency there and began deploying troops.
For several days, the federal army and Amhara nationalist militiamen – also called Fano – have been facing each other across the province. “The Fano’s strategy consists in stretching the positions of the army as much as possible. They attacked simultaneously in several towns far apart from each other”says an aid worker in Addis Ababa.
Internet cut
In an attempt to smother the fire, the authorities of the Amhara region – chaired by the Prosperity Party of Abiy Ahmed – demanded urgent federal military intervention on Thursday. “If the fighting continues, it will be anarchy in our province”warned the regional president, Yilekal Kefale.
On the same day, in Gondar, Amhara’s second largest city, intense clashes took place around the university campus. Students on their way to their exams were caught in an exchange of artillery fire. The army then deserted the town. She also left Lalibela – famous for its UNESCO World Heritage-listed rock churches – which is now in the hands of the Fano, along with dozens of other localities.
The government reacted by cutting off the Internet network in the region. The national carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, has also canceled its domestic air routes. “Due to tensions and an increase in violent incidents in the Amhara region, all travel in the area is not recommended, except for imperative reasons, until further notice”indicates for its part the embassy of France to its nationals.
Escalation risks
The crisis, which has been simmering for months, has its roots in the conflict in Tigray. The Amhara regionalists, who fought alongside the federal army between November 2020 and November 2022, today accuse the authorities of wanting to destroy them. In April, Abiy Ahmed decided to disband regional special forces to, he said, “build a strong and centralized army capable of protecting the sovereignty and unity of the country”. But this dissolution was perceived by the Fano and their supporters as a desire to regain control of the head of government, himself from the Oromo community.
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