Ethiopia

Oil, identity and consent: Why Ethiopia’s Somali region is pushing back There are two ways oil can arrive in a place like Ethiopia’s Somali region: with community buy-in and a clear ledger of who benefits, or with suspicion trailing the first truck. This week, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed told lawmakers his government is ready to begin using oil from new wells in the Somali Regional State for domestic markets, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) chose the latter framing—warning that a vital moment for Ethiopia’s…

Ethiopia opens first phase of Ogaden LNG project, pivoting from exports to power its own growth CALUB, Somali Region — Under a rinsed-blue sky and a brisk Ogaden wind, Ethiopia on Thursday inaugurated the first phase of its long-delayed liquefied natural gas project, a move that signals a decisive turn inward: from chasing export windfalls to fueling its own power grid, factories, and farms. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed stood before an array of valves and silvered pipes at the Calub gas field and called the Ogaden LNG project…

Tragedy Strikes During Festival: Deadly Scaffolding Collapse in Ethiopia In a devastating turn of events, a makeshift scaffolding collapsed at a church in the town of Arerti, Ethiopia, leading to the death of at least 36 people and injuring more than 200 others. This tragic incident unfolded on Wednesday morning, during a gathering for the annual Virgin Mary festival, a significant event marked by devotion and festivity in this predominantly Christian nation. The Heart of the Incident The disaster occurred around 7:45…

Tragedy Strikes Ethiopian Marathon Community with the Loss of Shewarge Alene The sun was just beginning to rise over Addis Ababa, casting a warm golden hue across the training fields, when the news spread like wildfire through the running community. Shewarge Alene, a celebrated Ethiopian marathon runner, tragically passed away after falling ill during a training session. She was only 30 years old. Alene had built a reputation as a formidable competitor, participating in 27 marathons since her debut in 2011. Her most recent…

Kenya and Ethiopia deepen military ties in bid to secure unstable borderlands ADDIS ABABA — In a gesture that underlines shifting patterns of regional security cooperation in the Horn of Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia on Monday signed a defence cooperation agreement aimed at tightening the two neighbours’ response to cross‑border threats, including the al‑Shabaab insurgency that has long bled into northeastern Kenya. Kenya’s Chief of Defence Forces, General Charles Kahariri, and Ethiopia’s commander, Field Marshal Birhanu…

Why Ethiopia’s rebuke of the Arab League matters beyond a diplomatic spat When Ethiopia’s ambassador to Somalia, Suleiman Dedefo, posted a withering critique of the Arab League this week — asking whether the bloc had become “an instrument executing Egypt’s anti-Ethiopia policy” — he did more than punt a regional insult into cyberspace. The message tapped into a deeper, increasingly fraught debate over water, sovereignty and how international institutions choose sides when resources and livelihoods collide. The immediate…

Rising Tensions: The Battle Over the Nile In the heart of East Africa, the waves of a centuries-old conflict ripple through the waters of the Nile, igniting fears of instability and regional tension. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), touted as a beacon of progress for Ethiopia, has become a battleground for Egypt and Sudan, who insist on keeping discussions limited to the three nations directly flanking this vital resource. Their recent assertions highlight the deep-seated anxieties surrounding the dam's operation…

Egyptian Troops Deploy to Somalia: A New Chapter in Regional Dynamics MOGADISHU, Somalia – As the sun rises over the verdant hills of Middle Shabelle, a new chapter is unfolding in Somalia's ongoing battle against the militant group Al-Shabaab. Egyptian troops have joined the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission (AUSSOM) to help restore peace in a region that has long felt the heavy hand of violence. This moment, however, carries complexities that resonate far beyond the borders of Somalia as geopolitical…

Ethiopia Bets on Homegrown Fertilizer as Dangote Signs $2.5 Billion Deal in Somali Region For a country where seven in ten people make a living from the land, the announcement landed with the weight of a good rain. Ethiopia will partner with Nigeria’s Dangote Group to build one of the world’s largest urea fertilizer complexes in Gode, in the Somali Regional State—an arid corner better known to many Ethiopians as a frontier than a factory town. The deal, framed as a bid for “food sovereignty,” is also a test of whether East…

Behind the Lines: Ethiopia and Egypt's Tug of War Over Somali Peacekeeping The geopolitical landscape of the Horn of Africa is shifting, and at its heart lies a quietly simmering tension between two regional powers: Ethiopia and Egypt. The backdrop to this palpable unease is Somalia, a nation struggling to rebuild amidst the shadows of its past conflicts. As Cairo prepares to send troops under the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), questions arise about the motives and implications of their…