The US government recently gave $2.9 million of military equipment to the Ethiopian National Defense Forces, a Facebook post claimed on October 6, 2021. The post used two images that show vehicles to support the claim. It further states that the military equipment was offered to Ethiopia in a bid to counter Al-Shabaab and other terrorist groups in Somalia. The post had received 10 shares and 39 reactions as this article went to publication.
However, HaqCheck has confirmed that the images don’t show that the US recently provided military equipment to the Ethiopian army. Therefore, the Facebook post is rated False due to its usage of inaccurate pictures.
The United States government has historically been a major donor to Ethiopia. The country has been a major strategic partner of the US during the imperial era, Cold War, and after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Ethiopia was a close ally of the US fighting the Al Shaabab in Somalia and countering terrorist organizations and activities.
However, the images posted along with the claim don’t prove that the US recently provided military equipment to Ethiopia. The images show American military assistance to Ethiopia a year ago. The vehicles and an ambulance in the image were donated by the US Department of Defense to Ethiopia on September 29, 2020. The military assistance, which was worth $2.9 million, was aimed at helping Ethiopia counter threats from Al Shaabab and other terrorist groups. The support included ambulances, Land Cruisers, trucks, other materials, and military operations training.
The images were first published by Al Ain, a United Arab Emirates-based media organization, on September 29, 2020. Click here to access the original images and article.
Although Ethiopia had been receiving considerable military assistance from the US government, these pictures don’t show recent military equipment provided to Ethiopia. Therefore, HaqCheck confirmed the post is an untrue claim and rated it False.
