Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of Military Aggression, Backing of Armed Groups

Is Eritrea sabotaging Ethiopia's Red Sea access or is Ethiopia fabricating pretexts for aggression?

Published 1 day ago

Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of Military Aggression, Backing of Armed Groups

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Above: Gedion Timothewos Hessebon, Foreign Minister of Ethiopia, speaks at the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry in Addis Abeba on 22 Jan. Image credit: Sebastian Gollnow/Picture Alliance/Getty Images

The Spin

Pro-government narrative

Ethiopia's rightful pursuit of Red Sea access faces deliberate sabotage from Eritrea, which has been caught smuggling weapons to destabilize the country while occupying Ethiopian territory. Correcting the historic mistake of losing port access has become a survival issue worth any price, especially as Eritrea partners with Egypt to encircle Ethiopia militarily. The ammunition seizure in Woldia proves Asmara's red-handed attempt to arm rebels and undermine Ethiopian sovereignty.

Martin Plaut website Middle East Eye Africa Defense Forum Addis Standard

Government-critical narrative

Eritrea faces outright aggression from Ethiopia, whose leadership openly threatens to seize Assab port by hook or by crook while hypocritically accusing Asmara of border violations. Ethiopian forces previously praised and awarded medals to Eritrean troops, revealing current accusations as cheap lies designed to rationalize a new war agenda. Ethiopia's invocation of the Golan Heights analogy reveals the reckless intent behind false flag operations like the alleged weapons smuggling.

ChimpReports Al Jazeera Eritrea Ministry Of Information

Metaculus Prediction

Public Figures

Abiy Ahmed Ali

Establishment split

CRITICAL

PRO

Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of border incursions, supporting armed groups