Diplomatic Source Suggests Ethiopian Army Headquarters Targeted by Drones

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A diplomatic source suggested today, Friday, that a small drone attack was the cause of the explosions that shook the Ethiopian army headquarters and a military base in Addis Ababa this week.

Fighting erupted last week in northern Ethiopia as the Tigray People's Liberation Front launched attacks against federal forces, raising fears of a resurgence of the devastating civil war that took place in the Tigray region between 2020 and 2022.

For the first time, it appeared that the conflict reached the capital late Wednesday-Thursday, following reports of an explosion at the Ministry of Defense headquarters, which also houses the Ethiopian National Defense Forces in Addis Ababa.

A diplomatic source residing in the city told Agence France-Presse that drone strikes are the "most likely" cause of the explosions, "although we have not been able to obtain images or independent confirmation."

It is likely that the devices used were "FPV" drones, which allow the operator to guide them via fiber optics; these are commercial drones converted for military purposes and equipped with explosive payloads.

The source added that a military base in the capital was bombed almost simultaneously.

Although the Ethiopian army has a much larger fleet of drones, the rebels have also used them against air bases and airports in other regions of the country, including three attacks last Sunday in the Oromia and Amhara regions, according to data from the conflict monitoring organization "Aclid."

For its part, the "Critical Threats Project" affiliated with the American Enterprise Institute stated on Friday that rebel forces "launched a campaign of drone attacks across Ethiopia, including the capital Addis Ababa, aimed at weakening and exhausting Ethiopian forces and demonstrating their ability to expand the conflict to various parts of the country."

The government and army declined to comment on the explosions that occurred in the capital, noting that residents and workers near the army headquarters in the Tor Hayloch area of Addis Ababa confirmed hearing the sound of explosions.