What Caused The Ethiopian Conflict

Journalist Ann Neumann joins Sam in discussing the history behind the Ethiopian conflict.

Watch the Majority Report live MondayFriday at 12 p.m. EST on YouTube OR listen via daily podcast at

#SamSeder #EmmaVigeland #MajorityReport #politics #news #progressive #leftist #democrats #liberal

SUPPORT the show by becoming a member

Download TMR's FREE app

CHECK OUT MORE from the MR crew:

Matt Binder DOOMED

Brandon Sutton DISCOURSE

Emma Vigeland ESVN

Matt Lech LEFT RECKONING

OTHER LINKS:

Check out more from the MR crew:

Matt Binder DOOMED

Brandon Sutton THE DISCOURSE

Emma Vigeland ESVN

Matt Lech LEFT RECKONING

I had visited Ethiopia back in the late 90s and I just remember having spoken to someone I can't remember if it was a taxi driver who was talking about the Eritrean-Ethiopian war and saying it was like two bald men fighting over a comb. Like what is the Combs even here? Like it's unclear to me what their resources are, I mean I understand the idea that I want power and the Tigrayians are a challenge to my power. But over what? Is there a reason this is a resource fight or is it just simply I mean I'm unclear on what is driving the motivations for these. Because it's you know at one point these two are alive they are trans and the Tigraines are Allied and then the Amhara and the atriums are Allied against the I mean it just keeps shuffling around it's unclear to me what the are there any sort of like I guess sort of static realities about resources that are involved here. absolutely. I mean there are static resources whether it's farming, whether it's Water Resources power guns, or loyalties with other nations around the world. I mean as we know and really my interest in Ethiopia goes back to the 1960s when my father was an American soldier who was on a base classified still today outside of Asmara Eritrea. And it was really American influence that kept Eritrea under the Imperial power of Ethiopia until 1991. You know Eritrea had been colonized by the Italians. They had a lot of incredible infrastructure. And kind of this Western-facing identity. Not to say that racism wasn't a huge part of the colonial experience. but when the Americans and others pushed for Ethiopia to maintain control of Eritrea it was so the Americans could keep this base. and the area trans were incredibly resentful. you know Ethiopia at the time was quite futile and Haile Selassie was an emperor. And so the independence movement rose up there. The power struggle was for Independence to make their own decisions. You know I could have asked you the same question maybe about Florida or Montana. These are places that are home to a population with quite ancient history and a very beautiful tradition and who just make their decisions for them for these populations means very much to them. Eritrea is a dictatorship, one of the most authoritarian countries as I said. and it's a strange place to be. I went back in 2019 right after right after peace was made between Eritrea and Ethiopia and Eritrea is a strange place today. One of the highest Refugee populations because of mandatory conscription.