Once seen as Tigray's saviours, now cursed by its mothers, the TPLF is losing the people it claims to fight for.

This is a stunning fall from grace.

As reported by cbinews.tv, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, once Ethiopia's ruling party, is now facing a backlash inside Tigray itself as its latest rebellion sputters out.

Remember Tsegay Girmay? He joined the TPLF in 2020, furious at atrocities committed by Eritrean and federal troops during the brutal Tigray war. Six years on, the 32-year-old from Adigrat told AFP he is now relieved the movement is "on the verge of disappearing".

He is not alone.

In late September, the TPLF teamed up with other armed groups to try to "overthrow" the federal government in Addis Ababa. It failed fast, driven back by government drones. Now pushed out of Tigray's major towns, its fighters are hiding in the hills.

And that alliance? That's the painful bit. The TPLF joined forces with Eritrea, the very army many Tigrayans accuse of massacres and sexual violence during the last war.

Genet Hailu from Mekelle called it a "mistake". As a mother, she told AFP: "I cried, beat the ground in anger and cursed the TPLF, praying that it would never come back to power." She, like Human Rights Watch, points to forced recruitment, including children.

You can't understand Ethiopia without the TPLF.

The history: The TPLF led the rebellion that toppled the brutal Derg military regime in 1991. Despite Tigrayans making up just 6% of Ethiopia's 126 million people, the party then dominated Ethiopian politics until 2018, when Abiy Ahmed came to power. It was formally banned in 2025.

The war: The 2020-2022 Tigray war was one of Africa's deadliest this century, with estimates of up to 600,000 dead from fighting, famine and lack of healthcare. A fragile peace deal in Pretoria in 2022 collapsed into uneasy tension, which has now flared again.

The twist: Eritrea fought with Ethiopia against the TPLF in that war, then fell out with Addis Ababa, and in October actually sent troops to help the TPLF, before being forced back by Ethiopian drone strikes.

So for many Tigrayans, it feels like a betrayal on top of a betrayal.

The TPLF's vice president, Amanuel Assefa, is defiant, asking AFP: "How can one explain that people reproach a party that is sacrificing itself for them?"

But former supporter Natnael Gebregziabher, 35, says the party has become "a burden to the people of Tigray".

Not everyone agrees. In Axum, 52-year-old Gebremichael Abebe still backs them, fearing the federal government "wants to destroy us".

In October, federal authorities formally retook control of Tigray and installed a six-month interim administration, promising elections.

Is the TPLF finished? Not necessarily. Horn of Africa specialist Kjetil Tronvoll at Oslo New University College told AFP it is "too early to declare the TPLF dead"; its future will depend on whether it can self-reflect and how the federal government governs Tigray now.

For now, though, the party that once ruled Ethiopia is fighting for relevance in the hills it once liberated.

#Ethiopia #Tigray #TPLF #TigrayCrisis #HornOfAfrica #Eritrea #AbiyAhmed #AfricanPolitics #cbinews