Ethiopia and Eritrea Sever Diplomatic Ties Amid Escalating Northern Conflict

Ethiopia and Eritrea have severed diplomatic relations, marking a dramatic rupture between the neighbouring states as renewed fighting in northern Ethiopia fuels fears that the violence could spiral into a broader regional war.

The break in ties was triggered on Thursday when Ethiopia announced it was closing its embassy in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, and gave 10 Eritrean diplomats 48 hours to leave the country. Addis Ababa accused the diplomats of engaging in activities that posed a direct threat to Ethiopia's national security.

Eritrea hit back swiftly, announcing late on Thursday that it was cutting all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia. Its foreign ministry described Ethiopia's decision as "astounding" and said Asmara had been left with no alternative but to respond in kind. The ministry also warned of unspecified "negative corollaries" flowing from the breakdown in relations.

The diplomatic confrontation unfolded just hours after powerful explosions were heard overnight in Addis Ababa, including in the vicinity of Ethiopia's military headquarters and near the offices of the national intelligence service. Residents in two different areas of the capital separately told the BBC they heard blasts loud enough to set off car alarms.

A source linked to the opposition alliance told Reuters that its forces had launched drone attacks in the capital. Ethiopian authorities have not confirmed what caused the explosions, and no official reports of casualties or significant damage have emerged. The blasts came shortly after Ethiopia's National Intelligence and Security Service imposed an indefinite ban on drone flights over Addis Ababa and surrounding areas, citing the need to protect senior officials, critical infrastructure and public events.

The severing of ties follows a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries. Addis Ababa has accused Eritrea of backing an alliance of armed groups fighting the Ethiopian government — an allegation Asmara has consistently denied.

Ethiopia's government said the expelled Eritrean diplomats represented a "direct threat" to national security, a charge that Eritrea has rejected. In a rare interview with the BBC conducted before diplomatic relations were severed, Eritrea's Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel dismissed the accusations entirely. He told BBC Tigrinya that Ethiopia's governing Prosperity Party was scapegoating neighbouring countries to distract attention from internal conflicts and other domestic problems.

The diplomatic crisis comes as Ethiopian federal forces battle fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and its allies across parts of Tigray, Afar and Amhara. The latest hostilities are the most serious since a peace agreement ended the devastating Tigray war in 2022. An African Union mediator previously estimated that approximately 600,000 people died during that two-year conflict, underscoring the stakes of the current escalation.

Last month, the TPLF joined six other armed movements, including the Fano militia from Amhara, to form an alliance whose stated objective is to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government from power. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of helping that alliance. A pro-government militia commander fighting in Tigray also told the BBC that Eritrean soldiers had been involved on the front lines, though the BBC has not independently verified that allegation.

The two countries were allies during the 2020-2022 Tigray war, when Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopian federal forces against the TPLF. But relations have deteriorated significantly since then, particularly over Ethiopia's push for direct access to the Red Sea. Asmara accuses Ethiopia of pursuing an increasingly hostile policy over the Red Sea, while landlocked Ethiopia lost its coastline when Eritrea became independent in 1993.

Abiy has repeatedly argued that access to the sea is essential to Ethiopia's long-term economic and security interests. Eritrea, for its part, has accused his government of harbouring ambitions over its ports, feeding a cycle of suspicion that now appears to have reached a breaking point.

Meanwhile, fighting continues across northern Ethiopia. Federal forces and their allies appear to have made gains in southern Tigray and are advancing towards Mekelle, the regional capital. In Alamata, a doctor told the BBC earlier this week that at least 52 civilians had been killed during three days of intense fighting.

The TPLF has also been fighting in neighbouring Afar, which lies along Ethiopia's crucial transport corridor to Djibouti and the sea. Tens of thousands of people are estimated to have fled their homes there, adding to a growing humanitarian emergency in the region.

Both the Ethiopian government and the TPLF accuse the other of starting the latest hostilities. Tigrayan authorities say their forces were responding to a federal offensive and drone strikes, while Addis Ababa says Tigrayan fighters launched attacks after taking control of federally administered airports in Tigray. Independent verification of the competing claims remains difficult.

The collapse of diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea raises the prospect of a wider regional conflict involving multiple armed actors and neighbouring states. With the African Union's earlier mediation efforts having failed to prevent the current slide back towards war, the international community now faces the challenge of containing a crisis that could destabilise the entire Horn of Africa.