Ethiopian police say they have seized thousands of rounds of ammunition sent by Eritrea to a violently armed rebel group, sparking fears of renewed armed conflict.
Eritrea denied the allegation and accused Ethiopia of “floating false flags to justify the war it has been tortured to unleash for two long years”.
It comes at a volatile time for relations between the Horn of Africa neighbors, who share a turbulent and violent history.
Hopes of tentative peace, held during a 2020-22 civil war in northern Ethiopia, were later given up in a war of words over control of the Red Sea. This latest acquisition seems to be a sign of further progress.
On Wednesday, Ethiopian police said in a statement on Facebook that they had seized “over 56,000 rounds of ammunition” in the Amhara region intended to “arm the Fano rebels”, and arrested two suspects.
“The preliminary investigation carried out by the two suspects who were caught red-handed confirmed that the ammunition was sent by the government of Shabiya” – a term for the ruling party of Eritrea – they said.
Eritrea’s Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel denied the claim and accused the Prosperity Party (PP) of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of looking for a pretext for the attack.
Relations between the two countries have always been strained.
After a decade-long war for independence, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving it landlocked.
Five years later, a border war broke out in which more than 100,000 people died.
In 2018, the two countries signed a historic declaration to normalize relations. Eritrean troops then fought in support of the Ethiopian government during the civil war that broke out in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.
But relations soured when Eritrea was excluded from a peace deal that ended the conflict in November 2022.
In the three years since, the Ethiopian government has been battling a violent insurgency, launched by Fano rebels, who now control large parts of the northern Amhara region.
Eritrea has previously denied interfering in Ethiopia’s affairs.
Ethiopia’s calls for access to the Red Sea through Eritrea have caused relations with Eritrea to become increasingly strained in recent months.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy first publicly stated in 2023 that his country’s access to the sea was an existential matter, which Eritrea rejected.
In an interview earlier this week with state-run media, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki accused Abiy’s party of declaring war on his country.
He said that Eritrea does not want war, but added: “We know how to defend our country.”
Abiy said Ethiopia does not seek conflict with Eritrea and wants to resolve the issue of access to the sea through dialogue.