Weaponized Propaganda: How Eritrea Was Targeted Through Lies, Sanctions, and Smear Campaigns

The Silent Battlefield

The war against Eritrea has not been fought only with weapons or sanctions, but with propaganda. While many associate propaganda with wartime posters or state-controlled media, in reality, it is a comprehensive strategy of misinformation, psychological manipulation, and narrative warfare. It involves media, academics, NGOs, political lobbies, and even international institutions working in unison to shape perception and policy.

In Eritrea's case, propaganda has been used as a weapon of war—a tool to delegitimize its government, isolate it diplomatically, and suppress its model of true African independence. Behind this campaign lies a deeply disturbing truth: many of the crimes that Eritrea was accused of were either unsubstantiated or committed by the very forces and figures aligned against it.

The Manufactured Accusations

During the Tigray conflict, international outlets echoed the same message: Eritrean soldiers were accused of mass rape, looting, and crimes against humanity. These claims, often based on anonymous sources and reports sponsored by Western-backed groups, were rarely verified. Still, they were enough to shape international outrage and justify sanctions by the U.S., EU, and UN.

At the same time, these institutions and their echo chambers were silent about the verified crimes being committed by Ethiopian troops against their own citizens. Multiple Ethiopian regions—Tigray, Oromia, Amhara—have all witnessed mass atrocities at the hands of their own government. But Ethiopia's status as an "anchor state" for the West ensured that its crimes were minimized or buried.

The Kjetil Tronvoll Revelation

Perhaps the most disturbing exposure of this propaganda machine is the case of Kjetil Tronvoll, a Norwegian academic known globally for his anti-Eritrean rhetoric. Tronvoll was instrumental in labeling Eritrea a human rights abuser, working with media and institutions to shape global sentiment.

He is now facing accusations of sexually abusing underage girls, including a 16-year-old. The same man who built a career attacking Eritrea's morality has been accused of heinous crimes against the very youth he claimed to defend. Western outlets and institutions have gone disturbingly quiet on these revelations, exposing their complicity.

Fake Terror Links and a Network of Bias

Among the most destructive lies was the accusation that Eritrea supported Al-Shabaab—a baseless claim used to amplify fear and justify sanctions. No credible evidence has ever supported this. In fact, Eritrea has consistently opposed extremism in all forms. Even the UN eventually admitted that no verifiable connection between Eritrea and Al-Shabaab could be found. Yet the sanctions remained.

These distortions have been promoted by a tightly connected network of academics and analysts whose work on Eritrea is increasingly called out for bias, emotional manipulation, and political agenda.

Martin Plaut, a former BBC journalist turned academic, has written prolifically against Eritrea, often citing unverifiable sources and relying on one-sided testimony.

Brad Sherman, a U.S. Congressman, has frequently used his platform to lobby against Eritrea, often parroting claims later proven false or unconfirmed.

Mirjam van Reisen, a European scholar and vocal critic of Eritrea, has collaborated on numerous reports accused of bias, methodological flaws, and politically motivated conclusions.

All three, along with Tronvoll, have been central voices in shaping Western perceptions of Eritrea—yet their work is routinely challenged for lacking objectivity, ignoring Eritrean perspectives, and pushing narratives that justify sanctions and interventions.

Propaganda as Warfare

The use of propaganda against Eritrea is a form of modern warfare. It led to:

• Economic sanctions based on lies

• Diplomatic isolation based on fear

• Smear campaigns to fracture Eritrea’s diaspora

• International neglect of crimes committed by Western allies

This strategy is not new. It is the same colonial playbook used across Africa for centuries: demonize the independent, elevate the submissive, and silence the truth. Eritrea's only crime was refusing to kneel—refusing to become another pawn in the imperial chessboard.

The Truth That Cannot Be Killed

Eritrea remains one of the only nations in Africa that is not indebted to the IMF, not hosting foreign military bases, and not under the thumb of NGOs. For that, it has been attacked not with bullets, but with propaganda.

The revelations surrounding Kjetil Tronvoll, the silence on Ethiopian war crimes, the exposure of fraudulent terrorism accusations, and the growing scrutiny of biased scholars like Martin Plaut, Brad Sherman, and Mirjam van Reisen all point to one truth: the propaganda campaign against Eritrea was deliberate, coordinated, and rooted in imperial fear of African sovereignty.

But truth has a habit of surviving even the most powerful lies. And Eritrea’s survival, dignity, and defiance prove that even the most orchestrated smear campaign cannot erase a nation grounded in self-determination.