Fact Checks

HaqCheck did not debunk claims during the third week of January 2023. However, we observed controversies looming across the Ethiopian social media landscape.

Below are some of the controversies that appeared last week.

Withdrawal of Eritrean soldiers from Tigray

One of the controversies that emerged last week was the status of Eritrean soldiers in the Tigray region. Controversy about whether Eritrean troops were leaving Tigray was observed on the Ethiopian social media landscape.

International media outlets such as the Associated Press reported that Eritrean troops started withdrawing from Tigray.

The peace deal between the Ethiopian government and the TPLF says that foreign and non-ENDF forces should withdraw from Tigray concurrently with the disarmament of TPLF’s heavy weapons.

The United States and some European countries repeatedly said that Eritrean troops should leave the Tigray region.

Last week, Olusegun Obasanjo told the Financial Times that Eritrean soldiers were at the border. TPLF leaders, Getachew Reda and Kindeya Gebrehiwot wrote on their Twitter pages that Eritrean troops had not left the regional state and were still in Tigray. 

Later, the news that Eritrean soldiers were seen leaving Tigray regional state towns such as Shire and Aksum came out at the end of last week.

Controversy followed the information. Many social media posts appeared claiming that the information was false and that Eritrean soldiers were still in Tigray.

HaqCheck observed many social media posts mainly written in Tigrinya that Eritrean soldiers had not started leaving the Tigray regional state.

TPLF suspended top party leaders

A Facebook page with over one million and seven hundred thousand followers published a news article stating that the TPLF suspended five Executive Committee members during a recent meeting. The Facebook post attracted thousands of engagements and controversy across social media platforms.

According to the information, the top party leaders who were suspended were Debretsion Gebremichael, Fetlewerk Gebregziabher, Getachew Assefa, Alem Gebrewahd, and Getachew Reda.

The claim prompted social media controversy. Kindeya Gebrehiwot, a member of the TPLF Executive Committee denied the claim on his Twitter page.

Recommendations

We urge social media users to be skeptical and cross-check potentially misleading claims. They should look for additional sources for claims before reacting or before sharing them with others.

HaqCheck recommends social media content creators and influencers be responsible and refrain from circulating false and misleading information on social media.

Government offices and other eligible entities are recommended to offer timely information to the media and the public.

We urge the government and civil organizations to help realize the right of citizens to have access to information.

Ethiopia to launch a second earth observation satellite into orbit

One of the false claims HaqCheck debunked during the week was a news story published by state-affiliated media outlets that Ethiopia was preparing to launch its ‘second’ satellite into orbit.

The Facebook posts by the two pages were shared half a thousand times and got close to ten thousand reactions.

However, Ethiopia launched the second satellite into orbit two years ago.

The second Ethiopian satellite named ET-Smart-RSS was launched from China’s Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in December 2020.

The first remote-sensing satellite was constructed and launched from China in December 2019.

Yeshurun Alemayehu (PhD), Deputy Director of the Ethiopian Space Science and Technology Institute (ESSTI) told HaqCheck that the country already launched two satellites and will launch a third soon.

Properties recently looted from Tigray

A claim sharing images was made on Twitter that Eritrean soldiers were looting properties in Tigray.

The tweet was viral and shared many times on the platform.

Yet, the image used to support the claim was old. The picture was first published on Facebook on April 21, 2022. The description of the original image states that the picture shows looted properties being transported from Humera to Gondar at the time.

Thus, the post was rendered as False.

PM Abiy appointed a new Foreign Affairs Minister

HaqCheck came across a Facebook post claiming that former ambassador Mesganu Arega was appointed as Ethiopian Foreign Minister by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed replacing incumbent Demeke Mekonnen.

The post was later edited and stated that the former ambassador was appointed as Ethiopia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

However, Ambassador Mesganu Arega was appointed neither a Minister of Foreign Affairs nor a Deputy of Foreign Affairs Minister.

He was named by the Prime Minister as a state minister of the Ethiopian Foreign Affairs Ministry.

HaqCheck rated the post as False.

Recommendations

We urge social media users to be attentive and cross-check the authenticity of the information they encounter before they share it with others.

Social media influencers and content creators are recommended to abstain from disseminating false and controversial information on social media platforms.

HaqCheck recommends public offices provide timely updates to the public and the media. Disinformation is intensified when there is a lack of sufficient information.

The media and the general public should enjoy the right to access information.

The trend of the Ethiopian social media landscape was dominated by claims related to conflict and violence in Oromia regional state during the first week of January.

HaqCheck observed many images with claims that houses were being demolished in Addis Ababa. But we couldn’t confirm any of the images.

Below are the false claims that circulated on the Ethiopian social media landscape during the week.

An altered image that the Oromo Liberation Army preparing to attack Amhara civilians in Wollega

Two Facebook pages shared an image on Dec 10, 2022, claiming that the Oromo Liberation Front [Army] along with the Oromia Special Police Force was preparing to attack Amhara civilians in Wollega.

The Facebook posts went viral on the platform and gained many reactions. They were shared over two hundred fifty times on Facebook.

The Facebook posts used a fabricated image that is made up of two different images. An image that allegedly shows Kumsa Diriba, the commander of the OLA was amalgamated and photoshopped into another image.

However, HaqCheck couldn’t confirm whether the second image was true or false.

A false image of Amharas recently executed in Oromia

A photo was shared on Facebook on Dec 5, 2022, with a claim that the picture shows ethnic Amharas recently executed in the Oromia region. The post claimed that genocide was being committed against ethnic Amharas in Wollega of the Oromia region.

Yet, HaqCheck confirmed that the picture was old and was previously published in August 2020.

The image was first published by a Somali news website. The description of the original picture states that the image shows two Somali soldiers publicly executed for allegedly raping a 10-years old boy in Baidoa, a city in the South West region of Somalia.

Therefore, HaqCheck rated the post False for using an inaccurate image to support the claim.

Recommendations

HaqCheck recommends social media users be skeptical and always look for additional information for a potentially misleading claim. They should cross-check controversial claims they encounter on social media platforms.

Government authorities and other agencies are urged to provide timely and sufficient information regarding ongoing public affairs.

The lack of access to information is among the main factors behind disinformation dissemination. Government and other organizations should guarantee the right of citizens and the media to have access to information.

In case of potential controversies regarding the peace agreement signed between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian government in South Africa at the beginning of November 2022, HaqCheck has done an analysis of the terms of the peace deal and its ongoing status.

Background

Since 1991, the TPLF had been a dominant political force in Ethiopia ruling the country with an iron fist till 2018. Ethiopia had witnessed a widespread popular protest against the ruling party, EPRDF. The then prime Minister Haile Mariam Desalegn was forced to resign amid the massive unrest.

The public uprising culminated when the TPLF-dominated EPRDF elected a new party chairman and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

The new Prime Minister soon introduced drastic reforms within the ruling party including changing its program and organizational structures. The coalition EPRDF party was then dismantled and transformed into a more unified and liberal Prosperity Party.

The relationship between the TPLF and the other regional parties particularly with the then Oromo People’s Democratic Organization (OPDO) and the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM) began to sour.

Contention between the TPLF and the federal government reigned between 2018 and 2020.

In June 2020 the Ethiopian House of Federation approved the decision of the electoral board and the lower house to postpone the sixth national election due to the coronavirus.

The TPLF denounced the postponement of the election by the parliament and proceed with holding a regional election in September 2020. It was reported that the TPLF won the regional election 100 percent.

Soon after, the TPLF announced that the federal government was not elected and was illegitimate.

In October 2020, the Ethiopian House of Federation ruled that federal authorities should cut off contact with the Tigray regional legislative and executive bodies.

The federal government cut a subsidy budget to the regional state of Tigray and order government offices to cut any ties with the TPLF-led regional authority.

Armed Conflict

The tension culminated in a war that broke out on the evening of November 3, 2020.

The TPLF said that it had conducted a preemptive strike against the ENDF units based in Tigray.

The Ethiopian army along with the Eritrean counterpart and other regional forces quashed the TPLF forces and took control of the regional capital Mekelle within three weeks.

However, the insurgency continued in the regional state. The Ethiopian government with a request from the then Tigray Interim administration declared a humanitarian ceasefire and pulled its armed forces from Mekelle and many areas of the region.

After the TPLF forces controlled Mekelle in June 2021, they marched toward the Amhara and Afar regional states and seized many towns such as Woldia, Kombolcha, Dessie, and Debre Tabor.

Yet, the overstretched TPLF armed forces were driven out of the Afar and Amhara regions after a coordinated offensive by the Ethiopian government and its allied forces.

Cessation of Hostilities

Thereafter, the Ethiopian government declared a cessation of hostilities with the TPLF on Mar 24, 2022. The unilaterally declared truce was immediately adopted by the TPLF.

Informal talks to settle the armed conflict were initiated by the African Union. The organization assigned former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo to lead and facilitate talks between the belligerents.

The Ethiopian government established a negotiating team to look for a peaceful settlement to the war. 

In August 2022, the TPLF announced preconditions such as the restoration of basic public services in the regional state to kickstart negotiation.

The federal government ignored TPLF preconditions and said that it was ready to start negotiation with no preconditions.

Resumption of Conflict

The TPLF announced on Aug 16, 2022, that the armed forces of the federal government attacked its forces with artillery and tanks violating the cessation of hostilities.

The federal government and the TPLF forces blamed each other for launching attacks violating the bilaterally-embraced truce.

The TPLF forces advanced southward and seized the town of Kobo. The federal government and allied forces soon rapidly marched in the TPLF-controlled areas in the northwestern parts of Tigray.

Major towns in the Tigray regional state including Shire, Aksum, Adwa, Korem, and Alamata took control by the Ethiopian government.

Pretoria Peace Agreement

On Nov 2, 2022, the federal government and the TPLF signed a peace agreement in South Africa, Pretoria. The peace deal dubbed ‘Agreement for lasting peace through a permanent cessation of hostilities between the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)’ was signed under the auspices of the African Union.

What is the Pretoria Peace Agreement about?

According to the deal, the TPLF agreed to surrender its weapons within a month and disarm, demobilize and reintegrate its armed combatants into the Ethiopian defense force.

The federal government agreed to list the terrorist designation of the TPLF and restore essential services.

The parties to the deal agreed to establish an interim government within a week after the listing of the terrorist designation of the TPLF.

The Nairobi Declaration

On Nov 12, 2022, the senior commanders of the Ethiopian armed forces and the TPLF armed combatants met in  Nairobi, Kenya, and crafted a modality on the further implementation of the Pretoria agreement.

Article two of the Nairobi declaration stated that the parties agreed that disarmament of heavy weapons should be done concurrently with the withdrawal of foreign and non-ENDF forces from the region.

The deal and the later declaration also asserted that a monitoring and verification committee should be established by the parties and shall be assisted by an expert team appointed by the African Union.

The current status of the implementation of the agreement

Reports indicate that humanitarian aid delivery and essential services such as transportation, telephone, and Internet connection have commenced in the regional state.

On Dec 3, 2022, the commander-in-chief of the TPLF armed forces said that 65% of the TPLF combatants were already withdrawn from the frontlines.

The Eritrean soldiers reportedly withdrew from the town of Aksum and Shire at the end of last month.

Controversies regarding a border dispute

The Tigray and Amhara regional states have been in a border dispute.

Article 10 of the Pretoria deal states that the parties agreed to solve the land dispute in accordance with the Ethiopian constitution.

The current Ethiopian constitution, article 39, sub-article 3, says that every nation, nationality, and people in Ethiopia has the right to self-government which includes the right to establish institutions of government. Article 47 of the constitution also asserts groups can establish their state.

The request to form a self-government is accepted when the demand is approved by a two-thirds majority of the members of the legislative council of the administration (kebele, woreda, zone, region) in question.

For instance, in July 2018, the Sidama Zone Council decided to establish a Sidama regional state and the request was sent to the Southern Nations, Nationality, and Peoples Regional Council. The regional council in return voted in favor of the decision and allowed the zone to pursue statehood. The Ethiopian National Electoral Board arranged a referendum.

But this constitutional arrangement is applied when an administration wants to separate from a bigger administration and establish higher self-government.

The constitution has no explicit statement regarding the settlement of the border dispute between regional states.