By Soyome Getachew
Claim
On December 10, 2025, a social media account shared an image claiming to show Ethiopian military personnel surrendering. Specifically, the post featured an Amharic caption translating to “Today’s surrender.”
Verdict
False. The circulating image is outdated and does not support the claim of a recent surrender. Furthermore, the photo originates from a different conflict period several years ago.
Investigation and Findings
On December 10, 2025, an X account named “Mይሳው,” which has over 4,973 followers, posted an image showing Ethiopian soldiers alongside the caption “Today’s surrender” (see screenshot below).
MFC team used reverse image search tools to trace the image source and test its authenticity.
First, investigators analyzed the post from the X account “Mይሳው”, which reaches nearly 5,000 followers. This account shared the image on December 10, 2025, to imply a current military defeat.
Next, the team conducted a reverse image search to verify the picture’s origin. Consequently, they discovered that the original photo first appeared on the “Tigrai Online” Facebook page on September 14, 2022 (Review the visual evidence provided below).
Originally, the 2022 caption stated that soldiers from the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) surrendered to the Tigray Defense Forces (TDF). As a result, the image portrays events from the Tigray War rather than current 2025 developments. Because the image is over three years old, it cannot serve as evidence for “today’s” events. Therefore, the post shared by the X account, alleging that Ethiopian military personnel were surrendering with the caption “Today’s surrender,” is false.
Context
Currently, the Amhara region faces significant instability due to clashes between federal forces and Fano militias. This conflict ignited in April 2023 after the government moved to disarm regional paramilitary groups.
Unfortunately, this volatile environment encourages the spread of digital misinformation. For example, MFC has documented how parties often use recycled media to manipulate public perception. By using old footage to claim new victories, users exacerbate tensions and mislead the international community.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the claim that Ethiopian soldiers surrendered on December 10, 2025, is demonstrably false. The investigation confirms that the user repurposed a 2022 photograph to fabricate a current event.
Thus, the post lacks any factual basis and functions as disinformation. After reviewing the evidence, MFC rated the claim as False. This finding underscores the importance of verifying visual evidence before accepting claims about the ongoing security situation in Ethiopia.
