Seven Ethiopian armed opposition groups have announced the formation of a new coalition to confront Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government, bringing forces active in different parts of the country under a common framework as fighting continues in Amhara and Oromia and tensions escalate between the federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front in northern Ethiopia.
Emmanuel Assefa, deputy head of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, said the coalition aimed to “overthrow the government and facilitate the establishment of a transitional government”. He said the alliance comprised seven armed organisations, including Tigrayan forces, Fano nationalists in the Amhara region and the Oromo Liberation Army, along with other groups active in different parts of Ethiopia.
Coalition broadens coordination among armed groups
Assefa added that the new alliances sought to change the federal government and pave the way for the formation of a transitional government. The announcement marks a shift in contacts among several of these forces, from talks and limited coordination to an attempt to build a broader framework for joint action, despite continuing disagreements among some members over political and military issues.
The coalition was preceded by moves announced by armed groups during August and September to coordinate their activities against the federal government. In August, Fano leader Zemene Kassie said the movement’s factions had united under a single leadership, and that groups representing several Ethiopian ethnicities and regions had formed an alliance to coordinate their actions against Abiy Ahmed’s government.
The Oromo Liberation Army, for its part, said on 17 September that broader cooperation was taking shape among armed opposition forces, but stressed that it did not amount to a comprehensive political agreement. The organisation described the emerging arrangement as a “procedural understanding”, rather than an agreement on core political issues or a mandate for any group to determine the country’s future.
The Oromo Liberation Army said the cooperation was aimed at ending clashes between opposition forces and creating conditions for broader transitional political opening. The description reflects the limits of the understanding among the participating groups: they are united in action against the federal government, but have not reached a common political vision for the next phase.
Fighting in western Oromia limits understanding
The announcement coincided with continuing fighting in western Oromia, where clashes have intensified in recent weeks between armed groups on one side and government forces and regional security forces on the other. The region has seen repeated clashes for years between armed Oromo and Amhara groups, alongside operations carried out by government forces.
On 17 September, the Oromo Liberation Army said there was a distinction between the broader cooperation being built among armed opposition forces and the groups it was fighting in the Wollega area. The organisation called on Amhara factions to clarify their position on an armed group active in the area, highlighting continuing differences on the ground among forces seeking to coordinate their actions.
Tigray tensions revive fears of renewed fighting
In the north, tensions have again risen between the federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front after both sides deployed forces near the region. The movements raised fears that fighting could resume after it ended with the signing of the Pretoria Agreement in 2022, while military activity continued to be reported along Tigray’s borders in recent months.
The Ethiopian government announced on 18 September that about 300 Tigray People’s Liberation Front fighters had surrendered to federal forces. The army said the handover included more than 280 individual and collective weapons, as well as quantities of ammunition. Emmanuel Assefa declined to comment on the government’s announcement about the fighters surrendering themselves and their weapons, saying he could not comment on such military matters.
This came amid continuing accusations and tensions between the federal authorities and the front, which fought a war against government forces before the 2022 agreement. In recent months, the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front have deployed forces along the region’s borders.
Drone strikes complicate the security picture
The federal army also carried out drone strikes in August and September targeting military sites in the area, according to data from the conflict-monitoring group ACLED. The coalition’s formation comes amid a security landscape in which the battlefronts in Amhara and Oromia overlap with military tensions in Tigray.
While the seven groups say they seek to change the government and open the way to a transitional phase, the form of their cooperation remains, according to the Oromo Liberation Army’s position, limited to a procedural understanding that does not constitute a comprehensive political agreement.
