Border Infiltration Claims Raise Ethiopia-Eritrea Tensions

Rising tensions along the Ethiopia-Eritrea frontier are raising fears of renewed conflict in the Horn of Africa, as Ethiopian officials accuse Eritrea of covert military infiltration and support for armed groups inside the Tigray region.

The dispute reflects unresolved tensions following the 2020-2022 Tigray war, which killed at least 600,000 people and reshaped political dynamics in northern Ethiopia. Reports from local residents and military sources indicate increased troop activity, infiltration claims, and clashes involving regional forces.

Residents in Ethiopia’s Tigray region say Eritrean soldiers have entered sensitive border zones, particularly around Mekelle, Adigrat, and Zalambessa, according to information cited by The Africa Report. A military source speaking anonymously told the publication that Eritrean troops have crossed into Ethiopian territory through multiple routes.

“They have entered through Tigray now,” the source said. “In Tigray, they have come as far as Mekelle, Adigrat and Zalambessa.”

The source added that infiltration also occurs through Hamdayet, a Sudanese town located near the Ethiopian border town of Humera. The area has become a logistical corridor linking Eritrean positions with zones controlled by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

According to the same military source, Eritrean personnel sometimes operate covertly among local populations. “The Eritrean troops disguise themselves as [Ethiopian troops] and we catch them frequently,” the source said.

The accusations have intensified diplomatic friction between Addis Ababa and Asmara. In a February 7 letter, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos accused Eritrea of supporting militant groups operating within Ethiopia and demanded the withdrawal of Eritrean troops.

Gedion described the alleged actions as “not just provocations but acts of outright aggression.”

Eritrea’s government rejected the claims. On February 9, the Eritrean Ministry of Information issued a statement dismissing the accusations as fabricated. The ministry said the allegations were “patently false and fabricated,” adding they were part of what it described as a “spiral of hostile campaigns against Eritrea for more than two years.”

The statement also emphasized that “The government of Eritrea has no appetite for, or desire to, engage in meaningless acrimony.”

Despite Eritrea’s denial, Ethiopian military deployments have increased along the Tigray border. Local residents told Agence France-Presse that large numbers of troops and military equipment had been moved toward northern frontlines.

The security tensions are unfolding amid an internal power struggle within Tigray. The TPLF, which governed the region before the war, is locked in a dispute with the Tigray Interim Administration, an authority installed by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in 2023 following the Pretoria Agreement.

The Tigray Defence Forces (TDF) entered the contested northwestern territory of Tselemt on January 26, clashing with Ethiopian federal forces and militias from the neighboring Amhara region.

Just three days later, the TDF advanced into Korem and Alamata in the southern Raya district, according to the International Crisis Group.

Federal authorities responded with security measures. On January 31, the Ethiopian government suspended all flights to the region and conducted two drone strikes in central Tigray.

Much of the current instability stems from unresolved disputes that emerged during the two-year civil war between Ethiopia’s federal government and Tigrayan forces. During the conflict, Amhara militias seized western Tigray, displacing hundreds of thousands of residents.

Although some families began returning to their homes in 2024, local reports indicate continued intimidation and abuses against returnees. The TPLF has repeatedly demanded that the federal government transfer control of disputed territories from Amhara authorities back to Tigray, a demand Addis Ababa has resisted.

The regional stakes extend beyond Ethiopia’s internal politics. The Horn of Africa already faces armed conflicts in Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan, while Ethiopia remains locked in a since-2011 dispute with Egypt and Sudan over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile.