Ethiopia and Eritrea severed diplomatic relations on Thursday in a fresh escalation between the neighbouring countries, coinciding with continued fighting in northern Ethiopia as both sides traded accusations of fuelling internal conflicts and supporting armed groups.
Ethiopia expels diplomats and closes its embassy
Addis Ababa announced the expulsion of 10 Eritrean diplomats, saying they posed “a direct threat to Ethiopian national security”, as well as the closure of its embassy in the Eritrean capital, Asmara. Ethiopian authorities accuse Eritrea of supporting fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front, which is engaged in clashes with Ethiopian forces.
In response, Eritrea's Foreign Ministry said the country “has no choice but to respond in kind and sever all diplomatic relations with Ethiopia”. The crisis ended with official relations between the two countries being suspended after prolonged tensions reached a critical point with the latest clashes. Hundreds have been killed or wounded since intense fighting resumed in northern Ethiopia last week.
Fighting revives fears of civil war
The Tigray People's Liberation Front, which controls the Tigray region, launched attacks in the neighbouring Afar and Amhara regions with the support of local militias, according to information emerging on the course of the fighting. The escalation revived fears of a renewed civil war, which Ethiopia experienced between 2020 and 2022 and which, according to estimates, claimed the lives of around 600,000 people.
The developments come as Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed faces a conflict on multiple fronts after several armed groups formed an alliance against him. Abiy Ahmed is due to take the constitutional oath for a new term on Monday after winning the elections held in June.
The prime minister has so far made no comment on the crisis over the severing of relations with Eritrea or the latest military developments in the north. In a separate diplomatic development, Ethiopia's Foreign Ministry asked Ahmed Moharam Ahmed Suleiman, a member of the diplomatic staff at the Egyptian embassy in Ethiopia, to leave the country within 48 hours.
The ministry said it had notified the Egyptian embassy, in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, that the diplomat was persona non grata, without giving reasons for the decision.
