logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2021
28m 47s

The Battle for Ethiopia

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

Kate Adie presents reporters' despatches from Ethiopia, the Cop26 climate summit, Switzerland, Georgia and Brazil.

The conflict in Ethiopia has left the country's northern Tigray region largely cut off, with millions facing starvation. Among the many combatants now on manoeuvres are the “Oromo Liberation Army” – the Oromo being a people who live mostly in the centre and south of the country. Catherine Byaruhanga was given a rare invitation to meet them.

Ethiopia is one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change - the subject of the Cop26 summit in Glasgow. Among those attending were the BBC’s David Shukman, a veteran of ten previous Cops, and someone who has watched at close hand the long battle to see the dangers of climate change.

The ski industry is already preparing for warmer temperatures, with predictions that the snow at many resorts will regularly melt, or never form in the first place. So what can these resorts do to stay in business? Simon Mills reports from Switzerland.

After former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili was smuggled back into the country, and then chucked in prison, he went on a hunger strike leading to protests in the street. What exactly is happening is still unclear, but then Rayhan Demytrie says that when it comes to Saakashvili, it has always been hard to separate myth from reality.

The pandemic meant that Sao Paulo's bars and restaurants were forced to shut – and yet there was one kind of food outlet which was permitted to say open, deemed an essential part of Brazilian life. They are called lanchonetes, local eateries with a tradition going back more than a hundred years. Andrew Downie explains why he is a lanchonete fan.

Up next
Oct 4
Dubai’s hidden sex trade
Kate Adie introduces stories from Dubai, The Dominican Republic, Denmark, Spain and Australia.Dubai is often described as one of the safest cities in the world - but safe for who? In the shadows of shining skyscrapers and shopping malls is an exploitative sex trade. Runako Celina ... Show More
28m 59s
Sep 27
Palestinian lives in the occupied West Bank
Kate Adie presents stories from the occupied West Bank, the US, Brazil, South Korea and Russia.When the UK government recognised a Palestinian state, he said he was acting “to revive the hope of peace and a two-state solution.” But Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said ... Show More
28m 45s
Sep 20
Europe's migrant challenge
Kate Adie introduces stories from across Europe, Nepal, Ghana, and Moldova-Transnistria.As countries across Europe harden their stance on immigration, Fergal Keane retraces the journeys refugees have taken over the years, including stories he has heard from Ireland, Syria, Turkey ... Show More
28m 34s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2024
Why are there warnings of famine in Tigray?
“The government has been reacting very strongly to the possibility of famine and they’re dismissing it, but they are admitting there is drought and that millions of people are being affected.”It’s just over a year since the Ethiopian government signed a peace deal with the Tigray ... Show More
19m 43s
Nov 2022
Ethiopia’s Tigray War: After the Cessation of Hostilities, What Next?
On 2 November, the Ethiopian federal government and Tigrayan forces reached an agreement to cease hostilities and end almost two years of bloody war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region. The truce came after the Ethiopian army, together with Eritrean troops and forces from the Am ... Show More
57m 57s
Jun 2021
The War in Tigray
This episode contains descriptions of sexual violence.Just a few years ago, Ethiopia’s leader was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Now, the nation is in the grips of a civil war, with widespread reports of massacres and human rights abuses, and a looming famine that could strike mi ... Show More
27m 9s
May 2021
Exposing the war in Tigray, Ethiopia
Massacres, gang rapes, forced famine — the list of atrocities being reported in Tigray, Ethiopia is long and growing. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared the military intervention officially over in November, but the situation on the ground clearly doesn’t reflect that. And there ... Show More
21m 8s
Nov 2022
Ethiopia: an end to the fighting
The BBC’s Addis Ababa correspondent Kalkidan Yibeltal tells us about the agreement just reached between the Ethiopian government and officials from the Tigray region, to stop fighting and to allow unhindered humanitarian access. He also reflects on the challenges of reporting the ... Show More
41m 38s
Mar 2021
Why are Eritrean troops in Ethiopia?
It’s been a war of narratives.Conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region has been going on for months now - and troops from neighbouring Eritrea have been accused of joining the fight.And that’s not the end of the story.The UN and human rights groups have also blamed them for some of t ... Show More
11m 47s
Apr 2022
Can a “Humanitarian Truce” Help End Ethiopia’s Civil War?
After almost seventeen months of devastating civil war in Ethiopia, the federal government on 24 March announced what it called a humanitarian truce. The offer would ostensibly allow aid into Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, which has, in effect, been under a blockade for month ... Show More
1h 8m
Nov 2020
Gedion Timothewos: Is Ethiopia sliding into civil war?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Ethiopia’s Attorney General, Gedion Timothewos. Ethiopia’s federal armed forces have launched the final phase of their assault on Tigrayan rebels in the north of the country. International observers have voiced deep concern about possibly devastating huma ... Show More
23m 47s
Nov 2020
Ethiopia crisis: High stakes for Africa
The fighting between Ethiopian federal troops and regional forces in Tigray has forced thousands of people to flee to Sudan for safety. The UN has warned of a full-scale humanitarian crisis. Ethiopia's Nobel Peace Prize winning prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, says there will be no le ... Show More
49m 41s