Explosions were heard overnight in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, three diplomatic sources said on Thursday. A source linked to the opposition alliance fighting government forces in the north said the alliance carried out several drone strikes in the city, including some aimed at the military’s headquarters. Reuters could not verify the claim, and witnesses reported no damage near the military base. The blasts have added to fears that renewed fighting in Ethiopia’s north is spreading toward the capital.
What Is Known About the Blasts
The three diplomatic sources spoke on condition of anonymity and gave few details. Two diplomats told Bloomberg that one blast was reported near the 4 Kilo area in the centre of the city and a second near the headquarters of the Ethiopian National Defense Force.
Spokespeople for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office, the federal government and the Ethiopian National Defence Force did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
If confirmed, it would be the first known drone attack by anti-government forces on the capital. Addis Ababa lies hundreds of kilometres from the front lines in Tigray, Amhara and Afar.
The Opposition Claim
The opposition source said the alliance hit several targets in the capital with drones. Reuters could not independently check that, and witnesses saw no visible damage near the military base. The source gave no further detail on what was struck.
The alliance has been fighting federal forces since last week. It is called the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival, and it brings together seven armed groups from different regions. The Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, is one of its main members.
A Drone Ban and a Capture Claim
On Wednesday, the national intelligence service banned drone flights over Addis Ababa and its surroundings for security reasons. It did not say when the ban would end.
Opposition forces had not been known to use armed drones, but evidence is growing that they may have some capability. On Tuesday, a pro-government militia said it had captured drone frames and batteries from forces linked to the TPLF. Reuters could not verify that either.
Drones have already been part of the war. A drone hit the headquarters of Tigrai TV in Mekelle on Sunday, and the UN chief, Antonio Guterres, said he was troubled by reports of drone use and harm to civilians. The government holds a heavy advantage in the air. It has a large drone arsenal, about 500,000 troops and support from abroad, notably the United Arab Emirates.
An Analyst’s Warning
Edward Bach, senior Africa analyst at the risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, said an opposition strike on Addis Ababa would change the politics of the war. He called it “a political game-changer.” It would undercut any government line that the capital is untouched by the conflict, he said. It would also narrow a major tactical advantage for federal forces, which is their control of the skies.
Fighting in the North
Last week’s clashes were the biggest escalation in Ethiopia since the 2020-2022 civil war ended. They broke a four-year-old peace deal between the TPLF and the federal government. The earlier war killed hundreds of thousands of people.
This time the TPLF has teamed up with six other armed groups that aim to overthrow Abiy’s government. Federal forces have moved forward in southern Tigray and are edging closer to the regional capital, Mekelle. The alliance has taken towns in neighbouring Afar.
The pro-government Tigray Peace Forces militia said on Wednesday that it and the Ethiopian military had captured the town of Korem. Korem is about 100 km (62 miles) south of Mekelle. An Afar government official told Reuters on Thursday that federal and regional forces had retaken the towns of Erebti and Abaala, near the Tigray border. Reuters could not confirm any of the battlefield reports.
In Afar, where the TPLF took several towns early in the fighting, tens of thousands of people have fled their homes. Valerie Browning, a founder of the Afar Pastoralist Development Association, told Reuters about the displacement.
Fears for the Wider Region
The conflict could add to instability across the Horn of Africa, which is already strained by Sudan’s civil war, friction between Ethiopia and Eritrea over Red Sea access, and spillover from Middle East conflicts.
Ethiopia’s government accuses Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt of backing the opposition alliance. All three deny it. Haji Awol Arba, Afar’s chief administrator, went further earlier this week. He told Al Jazeera that Eritrean soldiers had crossed into Afar to join the alliance’s offensive. Eritrea’s information minister did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Eritrea fought alongside Ethiopia’s federal government against the TPLF in the last war. Relations between the two old rivals have since soured. Asmara sees Abiy’s repeated claims that landlocked Ethiopia has a right to sea access as an implicit threat. Abiy has said Ethiopia intends to secure sea access by peaceful means.
What Happens Next
Several questions are open. The government has not said whether the blasts were drone strikes, who launched them or what they hit. Independent confirmation could come from more diplomatic or witness accounts, or from official statements. The drone ban over the capital stays in force, with no end date.
On the ground, federal forces are pushing toward Mekelle and fighting continues in Afar. How far the war spreads, and whether Eritrea takes a role, will shape what comes next. Until the explosions in Addis Ababa are confirmed or explained, the opposition’s claim remains unverified.
