Seven Rebel Groups Unite Against Ethiopia's Prime Minister

Seven armed groups fighting Ethiopian authorities in different parts of the country have announced an alliance to remove the government in Addis Ababa. The coalition, named Alliance for Survival, brings together the Fano militia in Amhara, the Oromo Liberation Army, the Tigray People's Liberation Front and four smaller groupings.

The groups accuse Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government of presiding over "war, genocide, mass destruction, and utter poverty", claiming Ethiopia is at risk of disintegration. Federal authorities have not yet responded.

Ethiopia has faced years of armed conflict in Oromia and Amhara, the most populous states in the country. Renewed tensions have also surfaced in the northern Tigray region, where a two-year civil war left hundreds of thousands dead and displaced millions. An African Union peace deal ended that war in 2022, but fears of a return to full-scale conflict persist, with both sides accusing each other of violating the agreement.

Besides Oromia, Amhara and Tigray, the new alliance includes groups based in three other regions, Ogaden, Afar and Benishangul-Gumuz, making up half of Ethiopia's twelve regional states. Amhara's Fano group fought alongside federal forces during the Tigray war. It turned against the federal government in an armed insurgency less than a year after the war ended, after refusing government orders to disarm. The government has been fighting the OLA since 2018.

The announcement of the Alliance for Survival coalition comes months after reports of an alleged alliance between the TPLF and neighbouring Eritrea. Abiy responded by saying he had faith in Ethiopia's defensive capabilities. "Even if others were added, we do not have an iota of fear regarding Ethiopia's sovereignty," he told lawmakers in July.

The country held a general election in June, with Abiy's Prosperity Party retaining its overwhelming parliamentary majority, despite the poll being overshadowed by conflict, accusations of repression and little participation by opposition parties. The Fano and OLA rebel groups rejected the election and its results. The Tigray region and its six million inhabitants were completely excluded from the poll.