Families have fled villages near Badme on the Ethiopia-Eritrea border after days of shelling and drone strikes, residents told BBC Amharic on Saturday, as the Badme fighting raised fears of a direct war between the two neighbours.
The clashes come two months after war resumed in Tigray, and as Addis Ababa and Asmara each accuse the other of aggression. Any fighting between their armies would draw in the wider Horn of Africa, including Sudan and Egypt.
Ethiopia’s army chief, Field Marshal Birhanu Jula, criticised the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Eritrea’s government on Friday, DW Amharic reported, and Al Jazeera reported that Ethiopia also blamed Egypt. Egypt has rejected such claims: Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said in October that Ethiopian accusations that Egypt was fuelling unrest were untrue, Ahram Online reported.
What do residents say about the Badme fighting?
Residents of Sheraro, Adi Hageray and Biyara told BBC Amharic that federal troops and Tigrayan forces fought with artillery and drones across rural areas on Tuesday and Wednesday, 10 and 11 November. One said shelling at Adi Kilte ran from morning to mid-afternoon without a break.
Another said artillery was fired on Thursday towards Badme, where Tigrayan forces are positioned. A resident who fled to Shire said the fighting involved only Tigrayan and federal troops and that no Eritrean soldiers were present. Translations from Amharic are DNE Africa’s.
People who had returned to border villages after earlier fighting were leaving again on foot, by vehicle and by camel towards Adi Hageray, Sheraro and Shire, residents said. No casualty figures have been published.
Who is fighting at Badme?
Accounts differ. Diplomatic sources told Addis Standard of drone strikes mainly by Ethiopia and heavy artillery fire by Eritrean forces, with families leaving the town. One warned the exchange could become a large-scale confrontation.
The Critical Threats Project, a US research group, said the federal army reportedly began fighting Tigrayan and Eritrean forces around Badme on 9 November, and traded artillery fire with Eritrea’s army from 11 to 13 November. It could not verify on which side of the border this happened. ACLED, a conflict monitor, reported on 13 November that neither army controlled the town.
Colonel Solomon Hailemariam, spokesman for the Tigray Peace Force, which fights alongside the federal army, denied reports of fighting between Ethiopian and Eritrean troops at Badme, BBC Tigrinya reported. The army’s spokesman could not be reached by the BBC.
What do Ethiopia and Eritrea say?
Field Marshal Birhanu told residents of Mekelle on Friday that the army had returned to its old positions on the Eritrean border after six years, according to state broadcaster EBC, which later removed the post. On a BBC Amharic live page he was also reported as saying up to 800,000 young people had fled Tigray to escape forced recruitment by the TPLF. Neither figure has been independently verified.
Eritrea’s information ministry said on Friday that the country was preparing not only to stop a possible conflict with Ethiopia but to win it, and accused Addis Ababa of declaring an “invasion”, without saying where or when, BBC Amharic reported. Asmara has made similar accusations to the UN in an October information note.
Ethiopia, for its part, told the UN in September that Eritrean troops had crossed its border and that it had no option but self-defence. DNE Africa reported on Eritrea’s appeal to the Security Council in October.
Why does Badme matter?
Badme was the flashpoint of the 1998-2000 war between the two countries, in which tens of thousands were killed. A boundary commission awarded the town to Eritrea in 2002, but Ethiopia kept control until a 2018 peace deal.
The Badme fighting adds to pressure from outside the region. Western governments and US senators have warned of an Ethiopia-Eritrea conflict over Assab port.
FAQ
When did the Badme fighting take place?
Residents described heavy fighting on 10 and 11 November and shelling on 12 November. Conflict monitors date clashes around Badme from 9 November.
Are Eritrean troops involved in the Badme fighting?
Accounts conflict. Diplomats cited by Addis Standard reported Eritrean artillery fire, while residents who spoke to the BBC and the Tigray Peace Force said Eritrean troops were not involved.
How many people have been killed?
No casualty figures have been published by any side or by independent monitors.
What has Egypt said about Ethiopia’s accusations?
Egypt has rejected earlier Ethiopian accusations that it supports armed groups, calling them untrue. It had not responded publicly to the latest remarks by Saturday evening.
