{"id":4424,"date":"2021-12-21T09:23:32","date_gmt":"2021-12-21T09:23:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.munkhafadat.net\/?p=4424"},"modified":"2021-12-21T09:23:32","modified_gmt":"2021-12-21T09:23:32","slug":"foreign-drones-tip-the-balance-in-ethiopias-civil-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.munkhafadat.net\/index.php\/2021\/12\/21\/foreign-drones-tip-the-balance-in-ethiopias-civil-war\/","title":{"rendered":"Foreign Drones Tip the Balance in Ethiopia\u2019s Civil War"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Declan<\/a><\/div>\n
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By\u00a0<\/span>Declan Walsh<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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NAIROBI, Kenya \u2014 After Ethiopia\u2019s embattled prime minister pulled off a\u00a0stunning military victory earlier this month<\/a>, reversing a rebel march on the capital that threatened to overthrow him, he credited the bravery of his troops.<\/p>\n

\u201cEthiopia is proud of your unbelievable heroism,\u201d the jubilant leader, Abiy Ahmed,\u00a0told his troops<\/a>\u00a0on the battlefront at Kombolcha, on Dec. 6. \u201cYou were our confidence when we said Ethiopia would never lose.\u201d<\/p>\n

In reality, the reason for the reversal in Mr. Abiy\u2019s fortunes was hovering in the skies above: a fleet of combat drones, recently acquired from allies in the Persian Gulf region and elsewhere who are determined to keep him in power.<\/p>\n

Over the past four months, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Iran have quietly supplied Mr. Abiy with some of the latest armed drones, even as the United States and African governments were urging a cease-fire and peace talks, according to two Western diplomats who have been briefed on the crisis and spoke on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The motives of Mr. Abiy\u2019s suppliers varied: to make money; to gain an edge in a strategic region; and to back a winner in the spiraling conflict that has engulfed Africa\u2019s second most populous nation. But the impact of the drones was striking \u2014 pummeling Tigrayan rebels and their supply convoys as they pushed down a major highway toward the capital, Addis Ababa. The rebels have since retreated roughly 270 miles by road to the north, erasing months of battlefield gains.<\/p>\n

On Sunday, the Tigray leader, Debretsion Gebremichael, told the United Nations he had ordered an immediate withdrawal of all forces to the borders of Tigray, citing, among other factors, \u201cthe drones provided by foreign powers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n