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Rockets Launched from the province of Tigré, in northern Ethiopia, it reached the capital of Eritrea, diplomats confirmed by news agencies confirmed this Sunday. The US embassy in Asmara had already reported “six explosions” in the city on Saturday night, a few hours after the Ethiopian government seized control of Mek’ele, capital of Tigre, and declared victory over the Frente of Liberation of the Tigré People (FLPT).
This is the third time Asmara has been attacked since Addis Ababa launched the military operation to “regain sovereignty” in the province governed by the FLPT on 4 November. The FLPT justified the attack once again on the accusation that the Eritrean authorities have been assisting Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s federal government militarily, which both Ethiopia and Eritrea deny.
Two diplomats in Addis Ababa told AFP, “multiple rocketsIt appears to have hit the Asmara airport and military installations. Eritrea is one of the most secret countries in the world and there was no comment on the attack.
But the Eritrean government is close to Abiy, who negotiated peace with the neighboring nation, while the FLPT regards Eritrea as an archenemy. Indeed, the peace plan that earned Abiy the Nobel Prize in 2019 was one of the factors in the deterioration of relations between the federal authorities and the FLPT: the party controlled the coalition of regional ruling formations in Addis Ababa for almost three decades, including during the war with Eritrea, between 1998 and 2000.
In an analysis published in early November, the think tank International Crisis Group admitted that Eritrea decided to get involved in Addis Ababa’s support against the FLPT, anticipating that this could lead to the entry of different Sudanese groups, “each with different reasons to support Addis Ababa, Mek’ele or Asmara.”
After having promised to “resist to the death”, the FLPT forces appear to have disappeared from the capital of the region that until now they ruled. It is necessary to believe it in the declarations of Abiy, that on Saturday, early in the afternoon, they assured that Mek’ele was “under control” of the federal forces and put an end to the military operation that he ordered a little more than three weeks ago.
The truth is that it is impossible to know what is happening in Tigré, where all communications and electricity are still cut off. The United Nations and several regional leaders have called on the government to open humanitarian corridors and allow access for international agencies, fearing both the consequences of the bombings and fighting, as well as the plight of the thousands of Ethiopians who were already internally displaced and the 100,000 Eritreans. refugees in Tigré, dependent on aid organizations.
The few direct reports came through the more than 40,000 Ethiopians who fled the violence and arrived in Sudan and describe much violence and ethnic clashes: Federal forces attacked Tigré with the help of Amhara militias (from the region of the same name, who has disputes) with Tigré) and there have been massacres on both sides.
The pretext for the offensive was an alleged attack on two military bases of the Ethiopian forces in Tigré – which the FLPT denies – but since September, the Abiy government had not recognized the authority of the FLPT and considered its commanders who threatened to the Integrity of Ethiopia. This was after the FLPT declared Abiy himself illegitimate prime minister, when he decided to postpone legislatures due to the covid-19 pandemic. In response, regional leaders held their own elections, which Addis Ababa did not recognize.
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