Human Rights in Ethiopia: Analytical Report 2025-2026

Last updated: 16 September 2026

Photo: Ethiopia - Achilli Family | Journeys

The Ethiopia human rights situation in 2025-2026 is shaped by overlapping armed conflicts, political repression, and large-scale displacement. The 2020-2022 Tigray war ended with the Pretoria Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (November 2022) but its aftermath remains contested. Conflict has continued in Amhara region since mid-2023 and intensified in late 2024. The Oromia region has seen ongoing low-intensity insurgency between Ethiopian federal forces and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA). Furthermore, the federal government's expanded surveillance and detention apparatus has affected critics across all ethnic groups. Therefore, asylum claims from Ethiopia in 2026 reflect a country where multiple risk profiles produce credible persecution claims.[1]

For wider context, see the country reports section. For specific topics within Ethiopia, see the article on Oromo persecution.

The Political Context for Ethiopia Human Rights in 2025-2026

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been in office since April 2018. His early reforms — releasing political prisoners, lifting press restrictions, signing peace with Eritrea — earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019. The picture darkened from late 2020 with the outbreak of war in Tigray. Subsequently, conflicts in Amhara and continuing low-intensity violence in Oromia have produced large-scale civilian harm. As a result, the Ethiopia human rights record in 2025-2026 is significantly worse than at the start of Abiy's tenure.[2]

The federal political system

Ethiopia is a federal republic organised around ethnic regional states. Major regions include Tigray, Amhara, Oromia, Afar, Somali, Sidama, South Ethiopia, Central Ethiopia, South-West Ethiopia, Benishangul-Gumuz, and Gambella. The 1995 Constitution provides each "Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples" with the right to self-administration. Tensions between regional ethnic identities and federal authority structure most political conflict.

The Tigray War and Its Aftermath

The Tigray war began in November 2020 when federal forces, allied with Eritrean troops and Amhara regional forces, entered Tigray. Two years of conflict killed an estimated 600,000 people and displaced over 2 million. Ethnic Tigrayan civilians experienced systematic violence including massacres, sexual violence, and starvation as a method of warfare. The Pretoria Cessation of Hostilities Agreement of 2 November 2022 ended formal hostilities. However, Eritrean forces remain in some Tigrayan border areas. Furthermore, accountability for war crimes has been minimal.[3]

The unfinished accountability question

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission jointly investigated the Tigray war. Their joint investigation report (November 2021) documented violations by all parties. The UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) operated from December 2021 until its mandate ended in October 2023 — over Ethiopian government opposition. As a result, no independent international accountability mechanism currently exists.

Conflict in Amhara Since 2023

Amhara region has seen sustained conflict since mid-2023 between federal forces and Fano (Amhara nationalist militia formations). The conflict erupted after the federal government attempted to dissolve the Amhara Special Forces in April 2023. Subsequently, Fano armed groups conducted attacks on federal facilities; federal forces responded with aerial strikes and ground operations. UN reports documented hundreds of civilian deaths in 2023-2025, with mass arrests of ethnic Amhara civilians.[4]

Mass arrests and arbitrary detention

The federal government has used emergency powers to conduct mass arrests of ethnic Amhara individuals, particularly in Addis Ababa. UNHCHR and Amnesty International have documented detention without charge, often in unregistered facilities. Ethnic Amharas living outside Amhara region — particularly in Addis Ababa — have faced rounded up detention waves linked to the Amhara conflict.

Continuing Conflict in Oromia

The Oromia region has experienced low-intensity conflict between federal forces and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA, or OLA-Shene) since 2018. The OLA emerged from a split with the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), which had been part of the post-2018 political settlement. OLA holds territory in parts of West Oromia (Wollega zones) and operates in other Oromia districts. Civilian casualties have been documented, including massacres of ethnic Amhara civilians attributed to OLA forces and counter-massacres of ethnic Oromo civilians attributed to local self-defence groups.[5]

Persecution of Oromo political activists

Oromo political activists, journalists, and members of opposition parties (Oromo Federalist Congress, Oromo Liberation Front) face documented persecution. Many have been detained without charge for extended periods. The 2018-2020 reform period briefly lifted political prisoner status for many Oromo activists; the post-2020 period has seen renewed arrests. For detail see the article on Oromo persecution.

Press Freedom and Civil Society

Ethiopia ranked 160th out of 180 countries in the 2025 RSF Press Freedom Index. The 2018-2020 opening for the press has reversed. Several journalists have been detained since 2020, often under broad provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (Proclamation No. 1176/2020) and the Hate Speech and Disinformation Prevention and Suppression Proclamation (Proclamation No. 1185/2020). Internet shutdowns have been used during conflict periods, particularly in Tigray and Amhara regions.[6]

Women's Rights and Sexual Violence in Conflict

The Tigray war produced extensive documented sexual violence. The OHCHR-EHRC joint investigation report and subsequent UN reports documented widespread rape, gang rape, and sexual slavery committed by federal forces, Eritrean forces, and Amhara regional forces. Tigrayan forces also faced allegations. Survivors have received minimal support; medical care for survivors has been delayed by the destruction of healthcare infrastructure.[7]

Beyond conflict-related sexual violence, gender-based violence remains widespread in peacetime Ethiopia. FGM is practised in some regions; child marriage rates are high in pastoralist communities; intimate partner violence is widely reported but rarely prosecuted.

Religious Freedom

Ethiopia has historically been characterised by the coexistence of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Protestant Christianity, and Catholic Christianity. Tensions have escalated since 2018. The split within the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in 2023 — with Oromia-based bishops forming a separate synod — produced sectarian violence in some areas. Furthermore, tensions between Muslims and Orthodox Christians have flared in central Ethiopia.[8]

Ethiopia's human rights situation reflects compounding crises: protracted conflict in Tigray's aftermath, escalating conflict in Amhara, continuing conflict in Oromia, and a contracting space for civic engagement.
Human Rights Watch, World Report 2025 — Ethiopia

Displacement

Ethiopia hosts approximately 4.4 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) as of 2025. The largest concentrations are in Tigray (1+ million), Oromia (1+ million), and Amhara. Furthermore, Ethiopia hosts around 1 million refugees, primarily from South Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia, and Sudan. Conditions in IDP and refugee camps have been deteriorating. Several IDP camps have closed; people have been pushed into informal settlements without infrastructure.[9]

Asylum Implications

The following risk profiles are commonly accepted by courts and tribunals in 2026.[10]

Conclusion

Ethiopia in 2025-2026 remains a country where significant parts of the population face credible risk of serious harm. The Tigray war's aftermath, the active Amhara conflict, the continuing Oromia insurgency, mass arbitrary arrests, and a contracting press freedom environment combine to produce multiple Convention-grounded risk profiles. Furthermore, accountability mechanisms remain weak. Therefore, asylum claims from Ethiopia in 2026 require detailed, current expert evidence on the specific risk profile and the failure of state protection. To commission an Ethiopia expert report, use the find expert witness service. For broader context, see the country reports section.