Africa · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
Seven Ethiopian Rebel Groups Form Alliance for Survival To Overthrow Abiy Ahmed
Seven Ethiopian armed groups formed a coalition to overthrow Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The alliance seeks to establish an inclusive transitional government across regional states.
Whether the alliance is a unified military command.
7 of 8 outlets skipped it: alliance-led by Zemene Kassie delivering video statement.
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Borkena
“procedural consensus to open up political space rather than a binding, unified military command.”Read the original ↗
Borkena stresses procedural political coordination, while other outlets imply military command potential.
Alliance for Survival
Seven Ethiopian armed groups announced the formation of an alliance aimed at overthrowing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government and setting up an inclusive transitional government, naming it the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival, known as the Alliance for Survival. The alliance statement said the groups would work together to establish a transitional government guided by a charter, and it accused Abiy’s government of imposing “dictatorial rule” that pushed the country towards break-up. Zemene Kassie, president of the Amhara National Movement Fano, delivered the joint statement via video address, and the coalition included the Amhara Fano National Movement, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA).
The coalition also included 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, and it said the leaders had been talking for about a year. The announcement came weeks after clashes in northern Tigray deepened fears of a return to full-scale war, and the 2022 peace deal ended the two-year civil war but left disputes over disarmament and the TPLF’s legal status unresolved.
Claims, denials, and context
The alliance accused Abiy Ahmed’s government of presiding over “war, genocide, mass destruction, and utter poverty,” and it said Ethiopia was at risk of disintegration. Abdikadir Addaani Hirmooge, the spokesman for the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), told the BBC that the government had not respected a peace deal signed in 2018 to end the conflict in the Somali region, and he said, “Ethnic conflict, insecurity, and mutual oppression and pushing each other aside have not been eradicated.” Abiy’s spokesperson Billene Seyoum said the groups had already been collaborating for some time, while the BBC said it had asked the government for comment.
Al Jazeera reported that the government has not publicly commented on Sunday’s announcement, and it said the 2022 Pretoria peace agreement ended the war but left disputes unresolved. The BBC said the alliance includes groups based in Somali, Afar and Benishangul-Gumuz, making up a half of Ethiopia’s 12 regional states, and it described ethnic federalism as structuring states largely around dominant ethnic groups.
What comes next
The alliance set an immediate political objective of the “overthrow” of the government of Abiy Ahmed and said it would create an inclusive transitional executive governed by a Transitional Charter. The coalition said the transitional stage would work to end armed conflicts and address security, humanitarian, social, and economic crises, and it also called for a national dialogue with citizen participation. Al Jazeera reported that the 2022 peace agreement was signed in Pretoria, South Africa, and it said the TPLF declared the Pretoria peace deal “effectively dead” in mid-July.
The BBC said the announcement of the Alliance for Survival came months after reports of an alleged alliance between TPLF and neighbouring Eritrea, and it reported that Abiy responded by saying he had faith in Ethiopia’s “defensive capabilities.” The BBC also said the Fano and OLA rebel groups rejected the June general election and its results, and it reported that the Tigray region and its six million inhabitants were completely excluded from the poll.