logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2020
49m 41s

Ethiopia crisis: High stakes for Africa

Bbc World Service
About this episode

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 let-up in his government's 'law enforcement' mission. His aim is to arrest and put on trial TPLF party politicians who he alleges have put the country's constitution in danger. Ethiopia plays a key role in maintaining security in the Horn of Africa. With a population of more than 110 million, and one of the fastest growing economies on the continent, what happens in Ethiopia will inevitably have a wider regional impact. So how did the TPLF - a group which once dominated Ethiopian politics - end up being accused of destroying national unity? Did PM Ahmed opt for a military confrontation before all avenues for negotiation were explored? And what role should Ethiopia's neighbours play in this conflict? Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of experts.

Up next
Mar 2024
Bonus: Evan Gershkovich - a year since my friend was jailed in Russia
The Wall Street Journal reporter, who is the first US journalist charged with spying in Russia since the Cold War, has now been imprisoned for a year. His detention has been repeatedly extended and he is yet to face trial. His family, colleagues and the US government vehemently d ... Show More
24m 27s
Mar 2024
Is the future of journalism in crisis?
Over the past year thousands of journalists have lost their jobs as mass media news organisations struggle to make ends meet. Ad revenue is down, many publishers are struggling to gain subscribers, and social media has resulted in plummeting traffic to homepages. More than a thir ... Show More
48m 55s
Mar 2024
Bonus: Hidden reality of frontline combat through the eyes of Ukraine's soldiers
A bonus episode from The Global Story podcast.In a new BBC documentary, a single Ukrainian infantry company find themselves in a life or death battle to defend the eastern front against intense Russian attacks.Jamie Roberts tells us how he managed to get such rare access and what ... Show More
26m 40s
Recommended Episodes
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
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
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
Nov 2022
What next after Ethiopia's peace deal?
It’s two years since the conflict started in Ethiopia. The war has taken it’s toll on people in the affected areas with tens of thousands of people dead. And the World Health Organisation estimates 90% of people in the Tigray region are in need of food aid. This week, negotiators ... Show More
20m 26s
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
Oct 2021
Crisis In Ethiopia: Breaking Through the Propaganda, w/ Eugene Puryear
The U.S. and EU have accused Ethiopia of every atrocity imaginable and now they’re preparing sanctions. The Ethiopian government insists that it’s legitimately fighting a separatist group, the formerly ruling TPLF, which is attempting to regain power through violence and terroris ... Show More
1h 59m
Nov 2020
Why 30,000 refugees are fleeing Ethiopia
When Abiy Ahmed became Ethiopia’s Prime Minister in 2018, the country was full of promise and excitement for a better future. But this year, hope has turned to horror as headlines of ethnic violence and war have superseded those of peace-making. The conflict in northern Ethiopia ... Show More
24m 15s
Nov 2021
Can Ethiopia's Tigray crisis be mediated?
International diplomatic efforts are underway to try to end the year-long conflict in Ethiopia. As Tigrayan rebels advance on the capital Addis Ababa, many fear the country could descend into a wider civil war. So who, if anyone, can mediate the crisis? Join host Sami Zeidan. Wit ... Show More
20m 31s