Mereja Forum

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As fighting in Ethiopia’s civil war moves closer to the capital Addis Ababa, foreign nationals are scrambling to leave the country as soon as possible. FRANCE 24 spoke to one French expatriate about the shock of suddenly having to leave.


The large “danger” symbol and unequivocal warning on the website of the French embassy in Ethiopia say it all: “In light of the situation in Ethiopia, French nationals are formally called upon to leave the country without delay.”

Paris fears for the safety of the more than 1,000 French people living in Ethiopia, as the conflict between government forces and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) moves closer and closer towards Addis Ababa.

France has been calling on its citizens since November 23 to leave Ethiopia without delay; the French foreign ministry has booked and paid for seats on flights to Paris until the end of the week.

The UK has also urged its citizens to leave: “I am urging all British Nationals – whatever their circumstance – to leave immediately, while commercial flights are readily available and Addis Ababa Bole International Airport remains open,” UK Minister for Africa Vicky Ford said in a statement on November 24. UN employees have also been strongly advised to leave Ethiopia as soon as possible.

Bruno, a 29-year-old French business executive who moved to Ethiopia two years ago to work for a French media company in Addis Ababa, landed in Paris early on Thursday morning. “If someone said to me a month ago that I’d have to go back to France like this, I wouldn’t have believed it,” Bruno said. At that stage he doubted the conflict would spill over from the north of the country.

But on Monday, before the French embassy urged him to leave, he departed from Ethiopia along with the majority of French expatriates. “So far as I’m aware, only embassy workers, journalists and teachers are left – and the teachers should be leaving soon, as well,” Bruno said.

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