The Oromo Liberation Army, then the military wing of the
Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), was formed in 1974, While the OLA insurgency was relatively minor and relegated to small rural pockets before the
Tigray War, Ethiopian troops were forced to move north and leave a security vacuum in
Oromia, allowing the OLA to expand. Throughout 2020, 2021, and 2022, the group grew exponentially and controlled large swaths of territory in rural and semi-rural locations throughout the area. By late October 2021, the OLA controlled various areas in the Welega Zone,
Oromia Region including
East,
West,
Kellam, and
Horo. Massacres of ethnic Amharas in the region has provoked retaliatory raids by
Fano militias from the
Amhara Region, who regularly clash with the OLA on border areas where a significant number of ethnic Amhara and Oromo reside together. Large scale clashes between these groups have been reported in
East Welega,
West Welega,
Horo Guduru and
North Shewa, resulting in the displacement of more than 20,000 Oromos. As of August 2024,
Addis Standard reports that Fano is still active in parts of Oromia's
North Shewa zone, with entire districts becoming "uninhabitable" for Oromo residents. In January 2023 the OLF-OLA released a political manifesto in which they claimed they fought for "the freedom of the Oromo people from political exclusion, economic exploitation, and socio-cultural marginalization" and for "the right of our people to determine their political destiny and establish a responsive government through freely elected representatives."
Peace talks between the government and OLA have been mediated in
Tanzania, the first was in April 2023 and the second round in November in collaboration with
IGAD. Both of peace talks failed to reach an agreement;
Redwan Hussien blamed "unrealistic demands" for the failure of the peace talks while the OLA accused the Ethiopian government of co-opting leadership rather than "beginning to address fundamental problems that underlie the country’s seemingly insurmountable security and political challenges". In April 2023, violence shifted eastward to West and North Shewa zones as conflict in western Oromia decreased. This change coincided with failed peace talks and the dissolution of regional special forces, whose role was taken over by the
Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF). Although violence levels in western Oromia have declined from previous peaks, instability remains a significant concern. In mid-2024, the
ACLED recorded that violence levels in western Oromia have since remained steady, at reduced levels relative to the spikes in July and November 2022. On 1 December, a peace agreement was signed between the Oromia President
Shimelis Abdisa and Sanyi Nagasa's OLA faction, which stipulated that OLA fighters be moved into designated camps. This agreement reportedly resulted in the surrender of over 800 OLA fighters to the government. Nagasa was also reportedly appointed as the security advisor to President Abdisa after the agreement. By February 2025, the ACLED records clashes between the OLA and government forces in Oromia decreased by 60% since the peace agreement. This also coincided with
Kenya announcing an operation against the OLA at the Ethiopian border with the aim of curbing OLA activity. As of July 2025, the OLA holds significant influence in the countryside surrounding
Dembi Dollo. ).
Pro-federal government troops Anti-federal government rebels ==Human rights abuse accusations==