What Was the British Intelligence Agency MI6 Doing in Ethiopia?

Editor’s note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com

By Andargachew Tsege

Introduction

Note: This piece should have been published weeks ago, but personal health issues delayed its completion. Despite the delay, this matter remains critical, with significant ramifications for both Britain and Ethiopia.

Western governments, including Britain, often prioritize their national interests over ideals like human rights, democracy, transparency, and accountability when engaging with Global South nations. Historically, this has involved supporting regimes notorious for human rights abuses, including genocide and mass killings. Against this backdrop, the Ethiopian government’s ongoing genocidal acts against the Amhara make the recent visit by MI6 officials to Ethiopia unsurprising.

The pressing question is: What specific British interests are being served through MI6’s engagement with Ethiopian intelligence? What priorities or concerns are being pursued in the name of UK national security by aligning with a government mired in corruption and alleged atrocities?

1. Counter-Terrorism

One likely priority for MI6 in Ethiopia is counter-terrorism. However, the Ethiopian intelligence service has been severely compromised by corruption and infiltration by organizations like Al-Shabaab. For example:

Officers such as Mustafa Mohammed, Mohammed Mustafa, Jabir Mohammed, and Daniel  Alemu collaborated with Al-Shabaab while holding positions within Ethiopian intelligence, using their roles to pass sensitive information and later join the group. 

Nepotism  and bribery have eroded merit-based recruitment, enabling individuals with forged documents to infiltrate the agency.

High-ranking  officials are known to accept bribes and sell intelligence to the highest bidder, further weakening the agency’s integrity.

This compromised system has allowed Al-Shabaab affiliates and members of other terrorist organizations to obtain Ethiopian passports, facilitating global travel and operations.

2. Drug Trafficking

Ethiopia has become a hub for drug trafficking, allegedly enabled by its own intelligence services and federal police. Before 2018, Addis Ababa was a monitored transit point, with traffickers prosecuted and drugs transparently confiscated and destroyed. Since then, the situation has drastically worsened:

Seized drugs are funnelled back into circulation. High-end nightclubs in Addis  have become hubs for cocaine use, with many first-time users becoming addicts.

Traffickers are often treated leniently; some spend the night in luxury hotels before   being released within 24 hrs., leaving their drugs behind.

Between November 26  2022 and October 23 2023 – 342.67 kilograms of cocaine were seized at Bole Airport (Evidence in   Hand).  However, not a single trafficker was prosecuted, and none of the seized drugs handed to federal   police as evidence were accounted for.

Two examples; amongst the many we can present;

Ravenseli  Kodjo Darsham: Caught in his cargo luggage’s with 32.90 kg of cocaine from São Paulo, allowed   to stay in a luxury hotel released without prosecution. (See the document   posted.)

Mrs  raga: Ethiopian; Caught with 5.20 kg of cocaine at Bole Airport   smuggling to Mumbai India, handed over to third precinct police station.  She was  released the same day by Commissioner   Getu Argaw, the head of Addis Ababa police. The drug was taken away with the lady. (See the document below)

This rampant corruption has fueled the domestic drug market and illicit trade across Africa and beyond.

3. Human Trafficking and contraband trade

Human trafficking is another significant issue involving high-ranking Ethiopian officials, including army generals, intelligence officers, and police chiefs. These figures reportedly orchestrate networks facilitating:

Illegal  Migration: High-ranking officials, including generals, intelligence   and police chiefs, not only cooperate with human traffickers across   Ethiopia’s borders but also misuse their government privileges to facilitate illegal migration through Bole airport.

These officials are willing to issue fraudulent letters to embassies on behalf of individuals who have no affiliation with their institutions. They fabricate false payroll records and organizational identities to support these claims. Additionally, they create fake training programs abroad and request visas for their clients to the countries of their choice. Individuals seeking these illegal services reportedly pay over a million Ethiopian Birr to the government officials facilitating these corrupt practices.

Smuggling of Gold, Precious Stones,  Currency and Many Goods:  In one notable incident, the second-in-command of the Ethiopian army, General Abebaw, was implicated in the smuggling of 42 kilograms of gold. The gold, initially seized by immigration officials at Bole Airport while being transported by the general’s wife, was reportedly justified as being intended to fund their children’s education abroad. Despite the efforts of immigration officers who seized the gold at great personal risk, it was later handed back to General Abebaw with the approval of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

In Ethiopia there is  a well-organized network facilitating the movement of contraband goods, operated efficiently by senior government officials and their private affiliates. Key positions in transport and customs are  controlled by individuals with close ties to security forces and high-ranking civilian officials, ensuring the smooth operation of these illicit activities.

4. Illegal Arms Sales

The Ethiopian army, regional special forces, and police are at the centre of illegal arms sales. They sell weapons indiscriminately, including to Al-Shabaab. 

For example:

Oromo Regional Government officials have been purchasing weapons directly    from China without federal oversight or accountability. At one point, in 2022, 40   containers of weapons were delivered to the Oromia region, with the   shipment prioritized over merchants awaiting goods transported by Ethiopian      shipping lines. A significant portion of these weapons has ended up in the  hands of the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA).

Generals   have sold equipment and ammunition to the Tigray Defense Forces during   active conflict, undermining their own army. This practice is still going      on.

Armed groups in the two Sudan and other regions have sourced arms and   ammunition from Ethiopian forces.

We have credible evidence that army generals are selling heavy weaponry, such as mortars for 2.3 million Ethiopian Birr (£15,000) and RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades) with a single ammunition for 250,000 Birr (£1,600). I am certain that MI6  would not find it beyond its means to know what has been said is true. Should assistance be needed many are ready to avail themselves.

This rampant arms trade destabilizes the region and poses a threat to global security. MI6’s engagement with such a system raises questions about the alignment of UK national interests with Ethiopia’s corrupt military and intelligence operations.

Conclusion

In light of Ethiopia’s systemic corruption, its role as a hub for drug and human trafficking, and illegal arms trade and its compromised intelligence services, the objectives of MI6’s visit remain unclear.

What UK national interest is safeguarded by partnering with a government implicated in genocide, terrorism, and illicit arms trade? Under the esteemed leadership of Sir Richard Peter Moore, how does MI6 justify its alignment with Ethiopian intelligence?

These are pressing questions that demand transparency and accountability from both the British government and its intelligence agency.

Editor’s note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
Andargachew shared the article first on his own social media page.

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