After pushing all the way to Debre Birhan following the Alula Operation, the Tigrayan forces ultimately failed to achieve their objective. The single main reason for this failure was probably their stubborn insistence on clinging to the TPLF name.
The TDF (Tigray Defense Forces) banner had gained broad international legitimacy. Even though it was well known that TPLF leaders were providing political leadership to the movement, the diplomatic community viewed it as an inclusive force for change—one that brought together diverse political parties and a new generation of fighters.
The primary figure among the TPLF leadership who ruined this opportunity was Getachew Reda. Publicly dismissing the alliance on foreign media, he declared, “There is no such thing as TDF—we are TPLF.” Around the same time, former TPLF ambassadors living in the U.S., alongside individuals claiming to represent the public and various organizations, announced the formation of a transitional government.
Combined, these two missteps played right into the ruling Prosperity Party’s hands. Prosperity launched a relentless campaign, claiming that the old TPLF regime was staging a comeback and that foreign powers—including the United States—were actively facilitating it. Consequently, numerous nations and international bodies, including Russia, China, and the African Union, united behind a mandate to defend Ethiopia’s national sovereignty. This effectively neutralized the strategic diplomatic edge Tigrayans had built through immense sacrifice. Later, American officials summoned Tsadkan and Getachew, issuing a stern warning to pull back or bear the catastrophic costs themselves. Right then and there, all military momentum ground to a halt. We are all too familiar with the tragic aftermath.
Because the TPLF—deeply unpopular domestically and viewed as a pariah abroad—refused to yield to the widely accepted TDF umbrella, the Tigrayan struggle was derailed. The organization itself was defeated, fragmented, and reduced to the desperate state we find ourselves in today. Getachew Reda, who played a central role in suppressing the TDF identity, later defected and took refuge in Abiy’s camp. Yet even as he attempted to project an image of leading the “legitimate TPLF,” he eventually abandoned the name altogether to found his own party, Samret. In doing so, he sought to absolve himself of accountability and reemerge as a viable alternative force.
Today, the political entity known as the “TPLF” is not even recognized by the National Election Board. Yet, as people who still claim that mantle lead the anti-Prosperity resistance, the blood and sacrifice of the Tigrayan people are being squandered—all because of the deep-seated animosity these leaders accumulated over decades. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to see where this leads; one only has to look at the welcoming reception some Tigrayans are giving Prosperity forces and their mercenaries as they march into local towns.
I want to take this opportunity to deliver a clear warning: A Tigray without TDF is a politically irrelevant Tigray in Ethiopia. It will be a broken, subjugated region lacking self-determination—governed by directives from the central government and puppeted by its mercenaries. It will be a beaten territory where spilled blood, lost lives, and destroyed livelihoods receive neither justice nor restitution. For the Tigrayans who fought and dreamed of either an independent state or a prosperous, self-governing Tigray within Ethiopia, those dreams and sacrifices will be rendered entirely meaningless without TDF.
This grim reality is already taking shape with the federal government’s recent decision to place Tigray under a Command Post rule. Establishing a Command Post now is a calculated move to grant them impunity—not just for past atrocities, but for crimes they have yet to commit. Moving forward, whether you belong to TPLF or not, they can execute you in cold blood at the slightest sign of dissent simply by labeling you TPLF.
To save yourselves and bring this struggle to a victorious conclusion, the “TPLF” leadership must undergo the deep structural reform and self-correction they should have carried out long ago.
First: Consign the TPLF brand to the archives once and for all.
Second: Build an inclusive resistance leadership under the TDF banner that unites all segments of Tigrayan society, supported by a sophisticated PR strategy.
Change will never come from blind, uncoordinated firing. The Alula Operation succeeded precisely because the resistance was truly all-inclusive. University professors, religious leaders from churches and mosques, the global diaspora, and Tigrayans enduring the blockade all fought with a single heart and shared purpose. What halted that momentum was the resurgence of internal factionalism and a retreat into the party’s legacy playbook.
Only a leadership willing to learn from these mistakes and reform can offer any hope of victory. If they refuse, they will be defeated, dragging down the TDF—the ultimate shield of the Tigrayan people—along with them. Failing to make this shift effectively sentences the Tigrayan people to ongoing oppression, forces them to serve as instruments for rival political agendas, and allows those who committed genocide in Tigray to walk free without accountability.
To the veteran TPLF leadership in particular: If you genuinely care about your people, this is the absolute minimum step you must take.
Too late. Untimely suggestion but a good one.