Ethiopian Army Shows Attachés Drones It Says Were Seized From Tigrayan Forces; Identity and Origin Disputed

Ethiopia’s military has shown foreign defence attachés drones, loitering munitions and ammunition. It says the equipment was seized from Tigrayan forces and alleges that it reached them through foreign supply routes. Outlets reporting on the display disagree about what the drones are and where they were made.

Photo: Ethiopian National Defense Force soldiers at a military parade in 2019 (file photo; it does not show the equipment displayed in October 2026). Credit: Office of the Prime Minister – Ethiopia, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

According to Ethiopian media reports, the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) held a briefing for military attachés at Ground Forces headquarters in Addis Ababa on 13 October. A further session followed at Bishoftu on 15 October, led by Major General Teshome Gemechu. Video of drone airframes, launch equipment and ammunition boxes had already circulated on X from 9 October.

What is claimed

The ENDF says the equipment was captured from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and presented it as evidence of outside support for the group. Reports by Wazema, carried by Natna News, say the briefing implicated Eritrea and Sudan, and that both deny involvement. DefenceMENA has not been able to examine the ENDF’s evidence for these supply routes.

What is confirmed

The display took place: several Ethiopian outlets report it, and the publicly circulated video shows the hardware. Where, when and from whom the items were captured cannot be independently verified. The monitoring site Frontlines rates the account as a single-party claim. Ethiopian Desk questioned parts of the capture narrative.

Disputed identification

Reports name several systems: YIHA-III loitering munitions (described by one outlet as Turkish-made), the Iranian Mohajer-6, and Qaem or GB-20 munitions. One widely shared X post describes a “Sivrisinek S-389”. In one video DefenceMENA saw a partial tail marking beginning “S-38…”, which is not enough for a confident designation. Given the conflicting accounts, DefenceMENA is not identifying the model, manufacturer or country of origin of any displayed item. Visual resemblance is not evidence of origin.

Background

Relations between the federal government and the TPLF have deteriorated since the November 2022 Pretoria agreement ended the 2020–2022 Tigray war. Tensions with Eritrea along the northern border have also risen. DefenceMENA has reported on both, including the situation around Zalambessa and Tigray’s interim administration. Showing captured weapons to foreign attachés is a familiar way for militaries to build a diplomatic case for outside interference. That makes independent examination of serial numbers, markings and documentation especially important.

Drones have changed the balance in Ethiopia before. Federal forces relied heavily on imported armed drones during the Tigray war. Evidence that non-state forces had obtained loitering munitions would mark a significant change in the region’s threat environment, if it can be substantiated.

What to watch

Key indicators include ENDF publication of serial numbers or documentation, independent technical analysis of the displayed hardware, responses from Mekelle, Asmara and Khartoum, and any comment from the manufacturers named by outlets. DefenceMENA will update this report if verifiable evidence emerges.

Sources

• Frontlines: ENDF attaché briefing (event 5774) and Bishoftu session (event 5840)
• Natna News / Wazema: ENDF shows captured weapons to attachés; Eritrea and Sudan deny
• Ethiopian Desk: ENDF shows drones acquired by Tigray forces
• Posts on X: earliest video of the displayed equipment (9 October); Adwa Defence & Strategy analysis (13 October)