Ethiopia accuses Eritrea and Sudan of backing armed groups and drone attacks inside its territory
Ethiopia has accused Eritrea's President Isaias Afwerki and Sudan's army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, of supporting, arming and coordinating armed groups operating inside Ethiopia, including through repeated drone attacks. The accusation was made by Getachew K. Reda, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's Horn of Africa adviser, after he met the UN's special envoy for the Horn of Africa on Wednesday. The allegations have not been independently verified, and neither Eritrea nor Sudan responded to them in the statement.
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Key points
- Ethiopia's accusation was made by the prime minister's Horn of Africa adviser, Getachew Reda, after talks with the UN's Horn of Africa envoy on Wednesday.
- It names Eritrea's president and Sudan's army chief as backers of armed groups and drone attacks inside Ethiopia — an allegation, not an independently verified finding.
- Sudan has filed its own complaints accusing Ethiopia of letting the RSF launch drone attacks from Ethiopian territory; both sides deny the charges against them.
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- Consulates have been closed and diplomats expelled on both sides since October.
What happened
Relations between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan have deteriorated through the autumn. Ethiopia closed its embassy in Asmara on 1 October and expelled 10 Eritrean diplomats; in early November the dispute with Sudan produced reciprocal consulate closures and expulsions, days after Khartoum filed its Security Council and African Union complaints over alleged RSF drone launches from Ethiopian territory.
Getachew's statement did not name the armed groups he says Eritrea and Sudan back. In its background reporting, Addis Standard links Khartoum, in Addis Ababa's account, to Tigrayan rebels fighting in northern Ethiopia, while Sudan's complaint concerns the RSF, the paramilitary group fighting Sudan's army in Sudan's own civil war.
What we know / what we don't know yet
What we know
- That Ethiopia made the accusation, through the prime minister's adviser, after meeting the UN Horn of Africa envoy on Wednesday.
- That Sudan has filed counter-complaints at the UN Security Council and the African Union, and that both sides deny the allegations against them.
- That consulates have been closed and diplomats expelled between Ethiopia and Sudan, and between Ethiopia and Eritrea, since October.
What we don't know yet
- Whether Eritrea or Sudan actually support or arm groups inside Ethiopia — the allegation is not independently verified.
- How Eritrea and Sudan will respond to this specific accusation — neither replied in the statement.
- What the UN envoy proposed, if anything, to de-escalate the dispute.
Claim by claim
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Why this label: Getachew's own statement, posted on his official social media account after the meeting and reported by Addis Standard. This verifies that Ethiopia made the accusation, not that the accusation is true.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: No independent evidence for the support allegation was published with the statement, and neither accused government has responded to this specific accusation yet.
On the ladder: the evidence so far sits low — early, single or social sources. We publish the claim as a claim, never as fact.
Why this label: The complaints and the mutual denials are reported by Addis Standard in its account of the dispute; each side's allegation is carried as its position, not as a finding.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The expulsions and closures are reported by Addis Standard, with the Sudanese measures confirmed to Reuters by two Sudanese officials and the Assosa expulsions confirmed by a senior Ethiopian official.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The September accusation and both denials are reported by Addis Standard; the denials are carried as those governments' positions.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why it matters
The Horn's three neighbours are now publicly accusing each other of waging war by proxy while Sudan's civil war continues and fighting continues in northern Ethiopia. Taking the accusation to the UN's Horn envoy puts the dispute formally before the UN, and the expulsions show the diplomatic channels for defusing it are narrowing.
Background
Show the background timeline (5)
Ethiopia accuses Egypt and Eritrea of supporting Tigrayan rebels who launched an offensive in northern Ethiopia; both deny it.
Ethiopia closes its embassy in Asmara and declares 10 Eritrean diplomats persona non grata.
Sudan's army-aligned government files complaints against Ethiopia at the UN Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council over alleged RSF drone launches from Ethiopian territory.
Ethiopia expels six Sudanese diplomatic staff after the Assosa consulate closure; Sudan closes Ethiopia's Gedaref consulate in retaliation.
Getachew Reda presents Ethiopia's accusation against Eritrea and Sudan to the UN's Horn of Africa envoy.
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Published in Checking state — Ethiopia's accusation is confirmed as its stated position, and whether Eritrea or Sudan back armed groups inside Ethiopia remains unverified.