July 21, 2026
By: Girma Kebede
London, UK
The official imagery from Debre Markos on July 12, 2026, presented a triumphant narrative: Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed, smiling and relaxed, cutting the ribbon to officially inaugurate the newly renovated King Tekle Haymanot Airport. For a brief moment on state media, the city seemed unified, celebratory, and moving forward toward economic integration.
However, beneath the polished photo opportunities and modern runways lies an unsettling, violent reality. For the people of Gojjam and the wider Amhara region, a new airport does little to mask the sounds of ongoing conflict, military encirclement, and the humanitarian crisis unfolding on the ground. The event was not a celebration of peace, but a manufactured display of normalcy designed to project authority over a region currently under a state of siege.
A Year of Continuous War and Prolonged Suffering
This ribbon-cutting ceremony is not an isolated event set against a peaceful backdrop; it comes amid years of relentless, continuous military campaigns waged against the Amhara people.
The roots of this current crisis escalated in April 2023 when Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed initiated forced disarmament measures against regional security structures, triggering widespread resistance and leading to executive rule under sweeping emergency orders. By August 2023, his regime formally declared an all-out state of emergency and military campaign against the region. For well over a year, the Amhara people have endured arbitrary arrests, complete telecommunications blackouts, summary executions, and systemic economic destruction under the weight of continuous martial law. The human suffering in Gojjam, Shoa, Wollo, and Gondar is not a temporary disruption—it is a sustained, state-sponsored war that has claimed thousands of civilian lives.
Weaponizing the Past to Shield the Present
The most glaring hypocrisy of the July 12 inauguration was Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed’s attempt to weaponize the 19th century history of Emperor Yohannes IV. During his speech, Abiy Ahmed selectively dredged up ancient grievances— referencing the 19th-century campaigns and atrocities attributed to Yohannes IV in the region.
This rhetoric was as calculated as it was absurd. Critically, it is not Emperor Yohannes IV who is currently presiding over the widespread, documented campaigns against the Amhara people. It is Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed who has deployed the full force of the state against communities across Gojjam, Shoa, Wollo, and Gondar. To focus on historical grievances while actively overseeing an ongoing conflict that has cost thousands of Amhara lives through military actions, heavy artillery, and drone strikes is a stark attempt to deflect accountability. Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed is using 19th-century violence to sanitize 21st-century atrocities.
Words of Peace, Actions of Total War
While Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed used his platform at the airport to pay lip service to “dialogue” and “peaceful resolution,” his actions immediately following the visit exposed the truth. Following his address in Gojjam, his administration instructed full-fledged, high-intensity military operations across the region.
Reports confirm that over seven military generals have been tasked with overseeing this massive offensive in Gojjam alone. Over the last seven days, continuous land, air, and heavy fighting have been taking place, resulting in severe civilian casualties within highly populated civilian areas. Crucially, this intense escalation comes precisely during the rainy season—the only window of the year when local farmers can cultivate their fields. Disrupting agricultural activity at this pivotal moment is a calculated effort to inflict a man-made drought upon the population. This represents a genocidal act against the Amhara people, unfolding as a profound human tragedy in Gojjam while the entire world remains in silent mode.
Rather than seeking a genuine political solution, Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed launched a scorched-earth campaign, deploying heavy machinery, tanks, fighter jets, and indiscriminate drone strikes directly into civilian areas. The devastating impact on innocents—farmers, families, and local communities who are being caught in the crossfire of heavy weaponry—stands as a brutal contradiction to the government’s rhetoric of development and security.
The Masked Dialogue in Addis Ababa
Perhaps the most tragic irony of this campaign is its timing. A ongoing genocidal act is taking place across the entire Amhara region, and yet the fake national dialogue is taking place in Addis Ababa. With thousands of delegates gathered in the capital, cameras rolling, and grand speeches delivered about “national consensus” and “reconciliation”, the regime projects an image of inclusive democracy to the international community.
Yet, this stage-managed spectacle only highlights the regime’s deep duplicity. How can a genuine national dialogue take place in air-conditioned conference halls while Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed is simultaneously executing full-scale military offensives, dropping bombs, and shelling towns in the very regions whose grievances need to be heard? Performing unity through a fake national dialogue in Addis Ababa while conducting war and atrocities across the entire Amhara region proves that the process is not a path to peace, but a political mask designed to legitimize state authority while silencing dissent by force.
Airports vs. Road Closures: A False Choice
The irony of celebrating an airport in Debre Markos while the entire region is paralyzed cannot be overstated. Ethno fascist Abiy Ahmed referenced the difficulties of ground travel, framing the total breakdown of security and ground transport as a mere “inconvenience”. He even noted that while air travel was now solved, road travel (lonchina) remained difficult due to “security situations”.
This is a profound distortion. Ground travel is impossible because of a widespread state-sponsored war against local Fano resistance and the Amhara populace. For the average Gojjame citizen or farmer, a new airport is a meaningless luxury. An airport cannot reopen the highways that are vital for commerce, aid, or basic movement. It cannot replace a lost agricultural season or bring back a loved one killed in an airstrike. Celebrating “progress” from the cockpit of a federal plane while millions on the ground are unable to even cross their town safely is the definition of detachment.
The Legacy of Yohannes IV and the Standard of Sacrifice
Furthermore, the comparison to Emperor Yohannes IV is historically and fundamentally flawed. While no imperial leader is without blood on their hands, Yohannes IV’s legacy is defined by a commitment to national defense that stands in stark contrast to Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed.
Yohannes IV did not direct military campaigns against his own populace from a safe distance. He spent his entire reign on the frontlines defending Ethiopia’s territorial integrity and spiritual identity against foreign invaders—including Ottoman-Egyptians and early Italian colonizers. His final act was his greatest sacrifice. Confronted by invading Mahdist (Dervish) forces who had raided Gondar, Yohannes IV marched to meet them at the Battle of Metemma (1889). It was there, while fighting on the border for his country’s survival, that he received his fatal wound.
He is one of the few national leaders in modern history to die fighting on the frontlines for his nation. To use his memory as a political cudgel, while Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed deploys generals, jets, tanks, and drones against his own people in Gojjam, insults both the memory of the Emperor and the intelligence of the Ethiopian people.
Conclusion: The Need for Truth and Justice
State-led mega-projects, protracted emergency regimes, and staged conferences cannot substitute for human life, political justice, and a genuine commitment to peace. Reopening an airport named after Negus Tekle Haymanot while unleashing heavy artillery and military divisions on the very same region is a façade, not leadership.
If genuine progress is to be made for Debre Markos and the broader Amhara region, Ethno-fascist Abiy Ahmed must immediately lift emergency restrictions, cease military operations, pull back his heavy weaponry and drone strikes, end the performative politics in the capital, and stop hiding modern atrocities behind selective historical revisionism. An airport cannot land Ethiopia on the path to reconciliation; only truth, peace, and accountability can do that.
Editor’s Note: Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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