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Ethiopia – Tigray: What does Egypt stand to gain or lose from the one-year war?

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This article is part of the dossier:

Ethiopia’s Tigray: New frontier for regional interests

By Abir Sorour

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Posted on November 5, 2021 19:21

egypt ethiopia
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, shakes hands with Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, in Cairo, Egypt in 2018. (MENA via AP)

As Ethiopian officials continue to claim that foreign forces have fought alongside Tigray fighters in recent battles in the Amhara region, questions arise about how Egypt could benefit from the ongoing conflict that has claimed thousands of lives. There is also the question of if the Egyptian state has been supporting dissenting forces.

This is part 3 of a 5-part series

In 2016 and 2021, Ethiopia blamed Egypt for providing financial support and training for militants with the agenda of “undermining the country’s stability”.

However, a *diplomat at the Egyptian Foreign Ministry who served several tours in Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia, before being stationed in Cairo, tells The Africa Report that the situation in Ethiopia is very complicated. “Stability cannot be predicted, even in the long run.”

In the year since the Tigray war began, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and an allied rebel group regained territory after they recently announced the seizure of three strategic towns in Amhara region, a development that could change the course of the conflict.

No Egyptian boots will touch Ethiopia’s territory, but rather what is taking place is logistical support to opposition movements against the Ethiopian regime.

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