Explosions Reported Overnight in Ethiopia's Capital Addis Ababa

Diplomatic sources said loud blasts rang out overnight across Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, shortly after an opposition alliance claimed it had launched drone strikes, among them one aimed at the military's headquarters; should this be verified, it would mark the first time anti-government fighters have struck the capital with drones.⁴⁶²³

Blasts in the capital

Diplomatic sources reported that explosions rang out overnight in Addis Ababa, with the BBC noting one blast was heard in the Gotera area of the city around 00:30 local time. There was no official confirmation of the cause, locations, casualties or damage, according to the BBC.²⁴⁶³

A source linked to the opposition alliance said "the alliance had carried out several drone strikes in Addis Ababa, including some targeting the military's headquarters," according to Reuters reporting carried by the Cyprus Mail. Reuters said it could not independently verify the opposition's claim of responsibility, nor a pro-government militia's separate claim to have captured drone frames and batteries from TPLF-linked forces.⁸¹

A security source in Addis Ababa described the situation as a battle "unfolding across three levels," according to Mada Masr, which reported that an Ethiopian security source characterised the episode as a "simultaneous terrorist attack attempt using suicide drones targeting vital facilities within the capital." A resident told the outlet two explosions were heard near the military headquarters, the first around 6:30am and a second roughly 45 minutes later. No damage was visible near the military base, according to NBC News and aNewz.⁷³¹

Ethiopia's national intelligence service had banned drone flights over Addis Ababa, a measure the BBC said was announced hours before the explosions and which NBC News and the Cyprus Mail said was issued for security reasons. The opposition alliance was not previously known to operate armed drones, and growing evidence now suggests it may possess at least some drone capability, according to several sources.²³⁸⁴

War intensifies in the north

The reported strikes on the capital followed what NBC News and the Straits Times described as the biggest escalation of violence since the end of Ethiopia's 2020-2022 civil war, which killed hundreds of thousands of people. Fighting erupted in the north roughly a week before the explosions, according to the BBC.⁴⁶³⁸

Federal forces were reported to be advancing in southern Tigray and edging closer to the regional capital, Mekelle. Pro-government militia captured the town of Korem, about 100 km south of Mekelle, while federal and regional forces recaptured Erebti and Abaala in neighbouring Afar, according to aNewz and NBC News.³¹

NBC News reported that the Tigray People's Liberation Front had joined forces with six additional armed groups in a bid to topple Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government. Mada Masr reported that a Tigrayan military source said strikes deep inside Ethiopian territory were aimed at disrupting federal forces' use of air power and drones, while a former security source said the push into Afar was intended to pressure the supply line linked to Djibouti.³⁷

Fighting in Afar forced tens of thousands of people from their homes. "Fighting has forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes," said Valerie Browning, quoted by NBC News. Local official Haji Awol Arba claimed that troops from Eritrea had entered Afar to support the alliance's assault, a claim NBC News noted it could not independently confirm. NBC News and aNewz reported that Ethiopian authorities have alleged Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt are all backing the opposition alliance.³¹

Political stakes

According to aNewz, the recent violence has effectively collapsed the peace agreement the TPLF and the federal government signed four years earlier. Edward Bach, a senior Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, said "The opposition's ability to strike Addis Ababa would be a political game-changer, potentially undermining the government's narrative," a view echoed by NBC News and aNewz, both of which described any confirmed capital strike as a potential turning point.¹³