By: Nana Karikari, Senior Global Affairs Correspondent
Ethiopia and Eritrea have severed diplomatic ties as renewed fighting in northern Ethiopia raises fears of a wider regional conflict. Ethiopia announced that it was closing its embassy in the Eritrean capital, Asmara. The government ordered ten Eritrean diplomats to leave the country within forty-eight hours. Addis Ababa accused them of activities that threatened national security.
Eritrea responded swiftly by cutting diplomatic relations. The foreign ministry stated that Ethiopia’s decision had left it with no choice but to take reciprocal action. The diplomatic confrontation came hours after powerful explosions were heard overnight in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. Blasts occurred near Ethiopia’s military headquarters.
The diplomatic fallout follows a sharp deterioration in relations between the neighbours. Ethiopia accused Eritrea of supporting a new rebel alliance. Asmara has repeatedly denied this allegation. Eritrea described the decision to expel its ambassador as astounding.
The Eritrean foreign ministry issued a clear warning about the situation. The ministry stated that Eritrea has no option but to reciprocate in kind and sever all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia. Officials also warned of negative corollaries from the decision.
Roots of Conflict and Rebel Alliances
The diplomatic crisis marks a dramatic reversal from twenty eighteen. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed restored relations with Eritrea after two decades of hostility. That rapprochement prompted joyous scenes as the border reopened. Families separated for years were finally reunited. The diplomatic breakthrough helped earn the Ethiopian prime minister the Nobel Peace Prize in twenty nineteen.
The latest hostilities are the most serious since a peace agreement ended the devastating Tigray war in twenty twenty-two. An African Union mediator previously estimated that about six hundred thousand people died during that two-year conflict.
Last month, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front joined six other armed movements. This coalition includes the Fano militia from Amhara and the Oromo Liberation Army, operating as the Alliance for Survival. The stated objective of the new alliance is to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government from power.
Federal forces and their allies appear to have made gains in southern Tigray. They are currently advancing towards Mekelle, the regional capital. In Alamata, a doctor told the BBC earlier this week that at least fifty-two civilians had been killed during three days of intense fighting.
The Tigray People’s Liberation Front has also been fighting in neighbouring Afar. Afar lies along Ethiopia’s crucial transport corridor to Djibouti and the sea. Tens of thousands of people are estimated to have fled their homes in that area. Both the Ethiopian government and the rebel forces accuse each other of starting the latest hostilities. Tigrayan authorities say their forces were responding to a federal offensive and drone strikes. Addis Ababa maintains that Tigrayan fighters launched attacks after taking control of federally administered airports in Tigray.
Regional Friction and Strategic Disputes
The two countries were close allies during the 2020 to 2022 Tigray war. Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopian federal forces against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front during that period. Relations have deteriorated significantly since then. Tensions intensified over Ethiopia’s push for direct access to the Red Sea.
Ethiopia lost its coastline when Eritrea became independent in nineteen ninety-three. Prime Minister Abiy has repeatedly argued that access to the sea is essential to Ethiopia’s long-term economic and security interests. Meanwhile, Eritrea has accused his government of harbouring ambitions over its sovereign ports.
A pro-government militia commander fighting in Tigray told the BBC that Eritrean soldiers had been involved on the front lines. The BBC has not independently verified this allegation. Reporting from the region remains extremely difficult. The BBC is unable to report directly from Tigray, and internet access has been cut. It remains unclear who was responsible for cutting these communications.
In a rare response to the BBC before diplomatic relations were severed, Eritrea’s Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel denied that his country was involved in the fighting in Tigray. He told BBC Tigrinya that Ethiopia’s governing Prosperity Party was blaming neighbouring countries to divert attention from conflicts and other problems within Ethiopia.
Widening Diplomatic Fallout With Egypt
The diplomatic shockwaves extended beyond Asmara as Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry issued a diplomatic note to the Egyptian Embassy in Addis Ababa. The ministry declared embassy employee Ahmed Moharam Ahmed Soliman persona non grata and ordered him to leave the country within forty-eight hours. This escalation occurs against the backdrop of long-standing disputes over Nile water resources linked to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, alongside competing geopolitical maneuvers across the Red Sea. Responding to the measure, Cairo exercised the principle of reciprocity by expelling a senior Ethiopian embassy counsellor.
African Union Appeals
The African Union Commission voiced profound concern over the cascading diplomatic crisis. The commission urged Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Egypt to exercise maximum restraint and avoid actions or statements that could further destabilize the Horn of Africa. Stressing the necessity of open communication channels, the continental body called on all member states to resolve their complex disagreements through peaceful dialogue and established diplomatic mechanisms aligned with the African Union’s Constitutive Act.
International Response and Humanitarian Impact
The international community has reacted with profound alarm to the escalating crisis. The African Union has urged Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Egypt to exercise restraint. The organisation called on all parties to resolve their differences through diplomatic channels and warned against actions that could further destabilise the region.
The United Nations has also issued strong warnings regarding the security situation. Officials note that the violence is severely disrupting humanitarian work in northern Ethiopia. United Nations spokesman Stéphane Dujarric stated that drone activity and air strikes were putting civilians, vital infrastructure, and aid operations at risk. Insecurity and road closures are also restricting humanitarian movements across the affected zones. The United Nations has called on all sides to guarantee safe and unhindered access to people in need.
As the fragile architecture of the Pretoria agreement faces its most severe test yet, the abrupt severing of diplomatic ties underscores a dangerous geopolitical realignment across the Horn of Africa. Observers note that preventing an uncontainable regional conflagration will require immediate, high-stakes diplomatic intervention to bridge the deep-seated security mistrust between Asmara and Addis Ababa.
