Seven Ethiopian rebel groups form new alliance

Seven Ethiopian rebel groups have announced they have formed an alliance to remove the government in Addis Ababa and push for a transitional administration.The alliance brings together the Fano militia in Amhara, the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and four other smaller groupings in a coalition named Alliance for Survival.The groups accuse Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government of presiding over "war, genocide, mass destruction, and utter poverty", claiming Ethiopia is at risk of disintegration.Federal authorities have not yet responded.Ethiopia has faced years of armed conflict in Oromia and Amhara, the most populous states in the country.There have also been renewed tensions in the northern Tigray region, where a two-year civil war left hundreds of thousands dead and displaced millions.An African-Union peace deal ended that war in 2022, but there have been fears of a return to a full-scale conflict, with both sides accusing each other of violating that agreement.Besides Oromia, Amhara and Tigray, the new alliance also includes groups based in three other regions - Ogaden, Afar and Benishangul-Gumuz – making up a half of Ethiopia's 12 regional states.