‘Leave Ethiopia now,’ US, UK tell citizens, as rebel forces advance 200 miles to Addis Ababa

United States has told its citizens still in Ethiopia to leave the East African nation now, following heightened level of conflict between the central government and the rebel forces from the Tigray region in the north of the country.

Rebel forces, by Wednesday had reached within 200 miles to the Ethiopia’s capital city of Addis Ababa.

This is also as the United Kingdom has urged British nationals still in Ethiopia to make arrangements to leave the country using the opportunity of commercial flights still operational from the country.

Tigray in Ethiopia’s north, inhabited by a Muslim population has been involved long-drawn conflict with the Ethiopian government over demands for a separate state, which in turn has treated the populace with toughness.

However, many analysts believed the renewed conflicts may not be unconnected with the dispute between Ethiopia and Egypt over a proposed project to build a dam on the Nile River.

Tigray rebels have now been backed by their allies to strengthen their assault on Ethiopia.

Ethiopia also witnessed similar conflicts with Eritrea before eventually granting it a separate state. Eritrea remains Ethiopia’s only access to the Indian Ocean as the landlocked East African country with over 115 million is also the continent’s second most populated country after Nigeria.

United State President Joe Biden issued a stark notice to US citizens in Ethiopia on Monday, warning them that the embassy is “unlikely” to facilitate an escape if commercial flights become unavailable as Tigrayan rebels near the country’s capital.

In a security alert, the State Department urged US citizens to leave immediately, adding that there are still commercial flights available from the country’s capital Addis Ababa. But, the statement said, there will be no Afghanistan-style military airlift like the one that took place in August after Kabul fell to the Taliban.

“There are no plans to fly the US military into Ethiopia to facilitate evacuations or replicate the contingency effort we recently undertook in Afghanistan, which was a unique situation for many reasons,” a senior State Department official told reporters on Monday.

It’s estimated that tens of thousands of people have been killed in the yearlong war between the Ethiopian government and fighters from the north. The conflict has featured allegations of rape, executions, and other atrocities.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a recent interview with CNN that there is “tremendous urgency” to avoid letting the conflict spill into other countries in the region.

He said there’s no military solution to the conflict and said the country could be on a “path to destruction.”

Earlier in November, the US ordered all non-emergency government workers living in the country to leave immediately, after Ethiopian leaders declared a state of emergency on November 2.

Meanwhile, United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has told  British Nationals to leave Ethiopia now while commercial flights continue to operate following ‘deteriorating conflict’ situations between the country and rebel forces from Tigray, the northern region of the country.

Minister for Africa Vicky Ford said for those wishing to leave, the UK has made available interest-free loans to those who would otherwise be unable to afford commercial flights back to the home country, and has temporarily suspended the requirement for unvaccinated travellers to take a COVID-19 test pre-arrival in the UK.

“The conflict in Ethiopia is deteriorating quickly. In the coming days we may see the fighting move closer to Addis Ababa, which could severely limit options for British Nationals to leave Ethiopia.

“I am urging all British Nationals – whatever their circumstance – to leave immediately, while commercial flights are readily available and Addis Ababa Bole International Airport remains open. Interest free loans are available to help British Nationals to return to the UK who may otherwise struggle to afford flights.

“Those who choose not to leave now should make preparations to shelter in a place of safety over the coming weeks. We cannot guarantee there will be options to leave Ethiopia in the future,” Vicky Ford said.

Stability in Ethiopia continues to spiral as Tigrayan rebels, who hail from the country’s north, and their allies made it to within 200 miles (322km) of Addis Ababa, it was reported on Tuesday.