By Muluken Tekleyohanes
For Ambassador Media
The Ethiopian government stands before the world as a proponent of peace — hosting summits, issuing carefully crafted statements, and promising national dialogue. Yet behind this polished image lies a brutal and undeniable truth: while preaching peace, the government is relentlessly waging war — against its own people.
From the scorched villages of Oromia to the bombed towns of Amhara, Ethiopia is bleeding. Two major regions — Amhara and Oromia — are today gripped by armed conflict, humanitarian crises, and systematic human rights violations. These are not isolated skirmishes or security operations. These are full-fledged wars — waged not just with bullets and drones, but with propaganda, starvation, and silence.
In Oromia, the government continues to conduct heavy military operations under the guise of counterinsurgency. Entire communities are caught in the crossfire. Reports of extrajudicial killings, mass detentions, and drone strikes are regular. And yet, no meaningful political solution has been sought — only force.
In Amhara, following the government’s designation of the Fano movement as a “terrorist group,” federal troops have unleashed a deadly crackdown. Urban centers and rural areas alike have suffered from drone bombardments, curfews, and mass arrests. Civilians are dying, and the information blackout is near total. It is war — undeclared, but real. And it is being fought while the government continues to speak of “national unity” and “peacebuilding.”
This dangerous duplicity is not new. The Tigray war began under similar circumstances — with state media spinning tales of law enforcement while military operations were already underway. And now, a chilling admission from Mr. Tayo Dendea, the former Minister of Peace, confirms what many suspected all along. In a candid statement, he revealed that the federal government, not the TPLF, started the war deliberately to “purge” ethnic Tigrayans from the military. “We filtered them out and began that war,” he said — a damning confession of premeditated state violence.
If the war in Tigray was born out of lies, what should we believe about the wars in Amhara and Oromia?
This government has mastered the art of two faces: one for the international community, and one for its own citizens. The former sees peace talks and diplomatic language; the latter experiences bombs, arrests, and silence. Aid agencies are blocked. Journalists are intimidated. Peaceful dissent is criminalized. And still, the government claims the moral high ground.
Let us be absolutely clear: this is not peace. This is oppression. Peace without truth is propaganda. Peace without justice is violence. Peace without political will is a lie.
Ethiopia is not at peace. Ethiopia is at war — and the enemy, for this government, seems to be any community that demands dignity, autonomy, or accountability.
The international community must stop applauding empty gestures and start demanding real action. Ethiopia’s people are not fooled by soft words anymore. Neither should the world be.
It is time for truth. It is time for accountability. And most of all, it is time for a government that chooses peace not just in speeches — but in action.
Ambassador Media
