2023 Ethiopian military parade misrepresented as Eritrea invasion - AFP Fact Check
A viral video purportedly showing Ethiopian troops entering Eritrea has been debunked as manipulated footage from a 2023 military parade in Addis Ababa.
Amidst growing regional instability, a viral social media post claiming that the Ethiopian National Defense Force has launched an invasion of Eritrea has been identified as a fabrication. The video, which circulated widely on Facebook in late February 2026, utilized edited footage to suggest that Ethiopian troops had successfully crossed the border. According to an investigation by AFP (GN), the clip actually depicts a military celebration held in Addis Ababa years prior.
The deceptive 24-second video featured heavy artillery and military transport vehicles moving at an accelerated pace, accompanied by patriotic Amharic music and text claiming victory on Eritrean soil. However, forensic analysis of the footage confirmed that the scenes were taken from the 127th anniversary of the Battle of Adwa parade, which took place at Meskel Square in March 2023. Key identifiers, such as the Wegagen Bank headquarters and the Addis Ababa light rail infrastructure, were deliberately cropped out of the manipulated version to hide the metropolitan setting.
This misinformation surfaces during a period of intense diplomatic friction between the former allies. Relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea have frayed since the conclusion of the Tigray war, exacerbated by Ethiopia's recent demands for sovereign access to the Red Sea port of Assab. Reports of troop mobilizations along the northern border in Tigray have led international observers to warn of a potential return to open conflict.
While Ethiopia has recently accused Eritrea of making unauthorized incursions into its territory—claims that officials in Asmara have denied—fact-checkers emphasize that no evidence currently supports the claims of an Ethiopian military entry into Eritrea as shown in the viral post. Experts warn that such misleading content can further inflame tensions in the already volatile Horn of Africa region.