Last Wednesday, Nobel Peace Prize winner, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops and aircraft into the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia. This follows in the footsteps of Barack Obama, another Peace Prize winner, who launched a series of continuous and murderous wars during his eight years as president of the United States.
According to Al Jazeera, federal government fighter jets have bombed targets including arms depots in Tigray, and heavy fighting has broken out between troops loyal to each side.
“These airstrikes aren’t aimed at civilians but rather at targets stored by this dangerous group,” Ahmed proclaimed. The operation will continue “until the junta is made accountable by law.”
Tension between the country’s federal government, led by Prime Minister Ahmed, and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), considered to be a formidable ethnic group comprising some 6 percent of the country’s 110 million people, have been rising over the past few months, which culminated in airstrikes last Friday.
Ahmed’s government blamed Tigray leadership for violating “the constitution and endangering the constitutional system.” The major offense was Tigray’s decision to hold its own election in September without approval. It is Ahmed’s hope to centralize the country’s government.
The New York Times reported that analysts called Ahmed’s initial strike – on the same day as the U.S. presidential election – a high-risk gamble. The paper said Rashid Abdi, a Horn of Africa analyst, posted on Twitter that the leader “just made the worst strategic blunder of his career.”
The report said the United Nations called for an immediate de-escalation. Tigray reportedly has its own formidable paramilitary force comprised of 250,000 armed men.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Ahmed accused his adversaries of attempting to steal military equipment and artillery from a base.
“The last red line has been crossed with this morning’s military attacks and the federal government is therefore forced into military action,” Ahmed said, according to the WSJ.
The Times reported that even though the Tigrayan people only make up a relatively small percentage of the population, they have a “disproportionate power and influence in government affairs.”
The BBC reported an official from the TPLF posted a statement on Facebook that read, “Through their capacity and in the just war they are engaged in, the Tigray people will win.” The TPLF also appealed to the military in Addis Ababa to turn on Ahmed, The Times reported.
Debretsion Gebremichael, Tigray Regional President, said, “There is no reason for this because the people of Tigray held an election.”
Elections were barred in the country due to the coronavirus outbreak, the report said.
The NYT reported that Ahmed has had challenges trying to unite the different ethnic groups in the country, yet the country’s parliament has allowed him to stay in his position and postponed his own election due to the virus outbreak.
Al Jazeera reported that lawmakers recommended the “elections to be held nine to 12 months after the coronavirus is deemed not to be a public health concern.”
Money Woes
Prime Minister Ahmed has had domestic challenges after the virus’ outbreak. The country of 109.2 million has had 1,518 COVID deaths. The World Bank reported that 42 percent of the country’s businesses have closed, and 37 percent reported no revenue in March or April.
Schools in the country have closed, leading to what the World Bank said would be particularly damaging for poor children, “jeopardizing their ability to build human capital and affecting their future earning potential.”
TRENDPOST: While Ethiopia’s economy had been steadily growing and was strong, the COVID War has severely damaged it. Indeed, as the “Greatest Depression” worsens, economic conditions will deteriorate and civil unrest, which had been quelled, will escalate. As Gerald Celente has long noted, “When all else fails, they take you to war.”
And, the greater the tensions rise, the more people in this highly populated nation will seek refuge in safe-haven European nations, which will, in turn, boost populist political party movements throughout the Eurozone.
