7 Armed Groups in Ethiopia Form Alliance Against the Government

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Seven Ethiopian opposition and armed groups announced the formation of a new coalition to confront the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, in a move that brings together forces active in different regions of the country under a common framework.

The coalition aims, according to Emmanuel Assefa, Deputy Chairman of the Tigray People's Liberation Front, to "overthrow the government and facilitate the establishment of a transitional government," and includes seven armed organizations, among them the Tigray forces and the Fano ethnic group in Amhara, and the Oromo Liberation Army, according to what he told Agence France-Presse.

The announcement came after several armed groups revealed during August and September their efforts to coordinate their movements against the federal government, amid ongoing fighting in Amhara and Oromia, in addition to escalating tensions in Tigray.

For his part, Assefa added that the new alliances aim to change the federal government and pave the way for the formation of a transitional government. The coalition also includes, in addition to the Tigray forces, Fano, and the Oromo Liberation Army, other armed groups active in different regions of the country, according to statements reported by Agence France-Presse.

In August, the leader of "Fano" Zemen Kassi announced that the factions of the movement had united under a single leadership, stating that groups representing several ethnicities and regions of Ethiopia had formed an alliance to coordinate their actions against the government of Abiy Ahmed.

The "Oromo Liberation Army" also confirmed on September 17 that a broader cooperation among armed opposition forces is taking shape, but clarified that this cooperation does not represent a comprehensive political agreement.

The announcement of the coalition coincided with the ongoing fighting in western Oromia, where confrontations between armed groups and government forces, as well as regional security forces, have escalated in recent weeks.

On September 17, the "Oromo Liberation Army" stated that there is a difference between the broader cooperation among armed opposition forces and the groups they are fighting in the Wollega region, calling on the Amhara factions to clarify their position regarding an armed group active there.

These disagreements come in a region that has witnessed repeated confrontations in recent years between armed groups from the Oromo and Amhara, alongside operations by government forces.

On September 18, the French news agency reported the killing of at least 14 people and the kidnapping of 10 others in an attack carried out by an armed group in central Ethiopia, noting that "Fano" began its rebellion against the government in April 2023, and that several factions of it have recently begun to cluster under more coordinated leadership.

In the north of the country, tensions have escalated again between the federal government and the "Tigray People's Liberation Front," after both sides mobilized forces near the region, raising fears of a return to the fighting that ended with the Pretoria agreement in 2022.

On September 18, the Ethiopian government announced that about 300 fighters from the "Tigray People's Liberation Front" had surrendered to federal forces, while the army reported that more than 280 individual and collective weapons and quantities of ammunition had been handed over. The deputy head of the front, Emmanuel Assefa, did not comment on the matter, stating to AFP that he could not comment on such military issues.

AFP had reported that the Ethiopian government and the "Tigray People's Liberation Front" had mobilized forces in recent months along the border of the region, while the federal army carried out drone strikes in August and September targeting military sites in the area, according to data from the conflict monitoring group "Aklid."

Recent movements reveal a shift in communications between some of these forces from mere discussions and limited coordination to an attempt to form a broader framework for joint action against the government, despite ongoing disagreements among several of its components.

The "Oromo Liberation Army" described the emerging cooperation on September 17 as a "procedural understanding," emphasizing that it does not represent an agreement on fundamental political issues or a mandate for any group to determine the future of the country, but rather aims to end confrontations between opposition forces and create conditions for broader transitional political openness.