Cracks Threaten Ethiopia’s Newly Formed Rebel Alliance

Doubts are growing over whether the recently announced Ethiopian People’s Forces for Survival Alliance can hold together, amid signs that it may already be starting to fragment.

The alliance brings together seven disparate groups to fight government forces in Ethiopia. The fighting has been under way for a week.

Its formation placed groups with divergent positions under a shared banner. Their opposition to government forces, however, has not dispelled questions about their ability to sustain a united front.

The emerging signs of fragmentation raise uncertainty over the alliance’s cohesion at an early stage of the conflict. Its durability remains in question as the fighting continues.