Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has appointed Lt. General Tadesse Worede as the new interim president of the Tigray region, replacing Getachew Reda, whose two-year term ended this week. The decision comes at a critical juncture for Tigray, a region reeling from the devastating 2020-2022 civil war and escalating factional strife within the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which analysts attribute to Abiy’s deliberate actions since he rose to power in 2018, dismantling the TPLF-dominated Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).
Tadesse Worede, a former TPLF military commander during the civil war with the federal government, assumes the role with a reputation as a neutral figure amid the TPLF’s internal divisions. He previously served as deputy president of the Tigray interim administration and head of the cabinet secretariat for peace and security. His appointment follows an unprecedented move by Abiy last month, calling for Tigrayans to nominate leadership candidates via email — a process that infuriated Tigrayan activists and TPLF members, who accused the prime minister of mocking their society and undermining the region.
Tigrayan journalists, activists, and media figures, including Tewodros Tsegaye of Reyot Media, point directly to Abiy as the architect of the region’s turmoil. They argue that he has intentionally fomented conflict between the TPLF faction led by Getachew Reda, aligned with the federal government, and a dissident group under Debretsion Gebremichael, which recently seized the presidential office in Tigray’s capital, Mekele. Analysts monitoring the Horn of Africa assert that Abiy’s policies since dismantling the EPRDF and replacing it with Prosperity Party have triggered persistent bloodshed, with Tigray and Amhara regions bearing the brunt of his divide and conquer rule.
Tadesse inherits a region in crisis. Unresolved issues from the 2022 Pretoria Peace Agreement — including the return of displaced persons and the withdrawal of Eritrean forces — remain flashpoints, while Eritrea’s military buildup near Tigray’s border fuels fears of renewed instability. Tigrayan observers, however, lay the blame squarely at Abiy’s feet, accusing him of orchestrating a perpetual state of chaos in northern Ethiopia to weaken regional opposition.
