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Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Monday the Tigray region's dissident leaders had fled west of the regional capital after weeks of fighting but indicated federal forces were monitoring them closely and would attack them soon.
Abiy, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize, this month ordered military operations against leaders of Tigray's ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), in response to what he said were TPLF-organised attacks on Ethiopian federal army camps.
More than three weeks of fighting between federal soldiers and pro-TPLF forces has left thousands dead in the northern region, and prompted tens of thousands of refugees to flee across the border into Sudan.
"I want them to hear me: yesterday evening, around midnight, we saw them from the situation room in the area between Hagere Selam and Abiy Addi," Abiy said in remarks to lawmakers, referring to two towns west of the Tigray capital Mekele.
"We didn't attack them at night because as they retreated they took their wives, children and abducted soldiers... But this will not continue."
The fighting has been a dramatic escalation of tensions between Abiy and the leaders of the TPLF, which dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades before anti-government protests swept Abiy to office in 2018.
Abiy said on Saturday the military operations were "completed" after federal forces claimed control of the Tigray regional capital Mekele.
The TPLF leaders, however, have repeatedly vowed to fight on as long as federal forces are on Tigrayan soil.
Their exact whereabouts remain unknown.
'Mekele is ours'
As the Ethiopian military bore down on Mekele last week, global concern mounted about a possible bloodbath in a city that, before the conflict, had a population of half a million.
A communications blackout in Tigray has made it difficult to verify claims from both sides about how the fighting is going.
On Monday, Abiy claimed soldiers did not kill any civilians as they took over Mekele and other cities in Tigray.
"Mekele is ours, it was built with our own resources. We are not going to destroy it," he said. "Not even a single person was harmed by the operation in Mekele."
The International Committee of the Red Cross said Sunday that hospitals in Mekele were flooded with trauma patients, though it did not specify how the injuries were sustained.
Abiy also dismissed claims from TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael that airstrikes had resulted in many civilian casualties.
As Abiy tries to shift towards helping Tigray recover, the national human rights body called Monday for telecommunications to be restored and for water, electricity, and health services to resume.
The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which is government-affiliated but independent, also noted "complaints of ethnic profiling" including "forced leave from work" and travel restrictions.
"EHRC is gravely concerned that while there is no government policy nor legal framework condoning ethnic profiling, security measures designed t
He replaces Debretsion Gebremichael, whose immunity from prosecution was removed Thursday.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International said Thursday that scores of civilians were killed in a \"massacre\" in the Tigray region, that witnesses blamed on forces backing the local ruling party.
The \"massacre\" is the first reported incident of large-scale civilian fatalities in a week-old conflict between the regional ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize.
\"Amnesty International can today confirm... that scores, and likely hundreds, of people were stabbed or hacked to death in Mai-Kadra (May Cadera) town in the southwest of Ethiopia's Tigray Region on the night of 9 November,\" the rights group said in a report.
Amnesty said it had \"digitally verified gruesome photographs and videos of bodies strewn across the town or being carried away on stretchers.\"
The dead \"had gaping wounds that appear to have been inflicted by sharp weapons such as knives and machetes,\" Amnesty said, citing witness accounts.
Witnesses said the attack was carried out by TPLF-aligned forces after a defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian military, though Amnesty said it \"has not been able to confirm who was responsible for the killings\".
It nonetheless called on TPLF commanders and officials to \"make clear to their forces and their supporters that deliberate attacks on civilians are absolutely prohibited and constitute war crimes\".
Abiy ordered military operations in Tigray on November 4, saying they were prompted by a TPLF attack on federal military camps -- a claim the party denies.
The region has been under a communications blackout ever since, making it difficult to verify competing claims on the ground.
Abiy said Thursday his army had made major gains in western Tigray.
Thousands of Ethiopians have fled across the border into neighboring Sudan, and the UN is sounding the alarm about a humanitarian crisis in Tigray.
Djibouti president confirms Farmaajo – Bihi meeting, Abiy invited
\tDjibouti president Ismail Omar Guelleh has confirmed the meeting between Somalia and Somaliland leaders.
Somalia, Somaliland leaders to meet in Djibouti next week
\tPresident Abdullahi Mohamed Farmaajo of Somalia will meet with Somaliland leader Muse Bihi next week in neighbouring Djibouti, multiple sources have confirmed.
The meeting follows an invitation from the Djiboutian president Ismail Omar Guelleh.
A planned follow-up meeting in Somaliland, engineered by Ethiopia PM Abiy Ahmed, failed to materialize due to stern disagreement by political actors in Hargeisa, the Somaliland capital.
In between the two incidents, President Farmaajo admitted a dark chapter in Somaliland under the regime of Siad Barre.
December 1 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Idriss Deby's rule over Chad.
Coming to power after a coup against Hissene Habre, Deby quickly retired his army uniform to become a politician.
In 2016, Habré was convicted of war crimes by a specially-created international tribunal in Senegal.
Survivor in a complex region
Governing a country located in a chronically unstable region, the 68-year-old leader has exhibited spectacular resilience, surviving coups, rebel attacks and foreign invasions.
Using his powerful Zaghawa tribe and the loyal support of his ruling Patriotic Salvation Movement party, Deby has managed to survive central Africa's complex geopolitics, where tribes and militias control resources such as water, land and minerals.
He's been accused of running a one-party state, even though questionable elections have been held from time to time.
During elections or protests, N'Djamena has been accused of cutting off the internet.
A war veteran, Deby has instigated conflict, even encouraged it to his advantage - carefully juggling crises in Sudan, Libya, and the Central African Republic. With a powerful army, he's seen as an important force for stability in central Africa, the Lake Chad region, and the Sahel.
Chad has so far been spared much of the militant violence that has rocked Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Deby's forces have also been credited for dealing Nigerian terror group Boko Haram a blow.
Poverty despite oil revenues
He has managed to keep former colonial master France, the US and China close, often relying on Paris for military support and on Beijing for the country's financial needs.
His opponents have accused him of squandering the country's oil revenues on buying influence,and buying weapons while his countrymen live in poverty.
According to the United Nations, Chad has one of the highest levels of hunger in the world - with 66.2 percent of its population of 15.5 million living in severe poverty.
The country ranks 187th out of 189 countries on the 2019 Human Development Index.
July 1: ‘Several’ killed in Ethiopia unrest after singer shot dead
At least 239 people have been killed and 3,500 arrested in more than a week of unrest in Ethiopia that poses the biggest challenge yet to its Nobel Peace Prize-winning prime minister.
In the Oromia region, the toll includes 215 civilians along with nine police officers and five militia members, regional police commissioner Mustafa Kedir told the ruling party-affiliated Walta TV on Wednesday.
Officials earlier said 10 people were killed in the capital, Addis Ababa, eight of them civilians, amid outrage after a popular singer was shot dead last Monday.
Hachalu Hundessa had been a rallying voice in anti-government protests that led to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed taking power in 2018. Abiy swiftly introduced political reforms that also opened the way for long-held ethnic and other grievances in Africa’s second most populous country.
The military was deployed during the outrage that followed Hachalu’s death.
In remarks last week while wearing a military uniform, Abiy said dissidents he recently extended an offer of peace had “taken up arms” in revolt against the government. He hinted there could be links between this unrest and the killing of the army chief last year as well as the grenade thrown at one of his own rallies in 2018.
The 3,500 arrests have included that of a well-known Oromo activist, Jawar Mohammed, and more than 30 supporters. It is not clear what charges they might face. The Oromo make up Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group but had never held the country’s top post until they helped bring Abiy to power.
Local reports have said that in some places ethnic Oromo have attacked ethnic Amhara, and in Shashamane town some people were going home to home checking identity cards and targeting Amhara residents.
Businesses have now begun opening slowly in Oromia after the violence in which several hundred homes in Ethiopia were burned or damaged.
But Ethiopia’s internet service remains cut, making it difficult for rights monitor and others to track the scores of killings.
July 6: Weekend offline amid high security, mass arrests
Ethiopian police over the weekend were patrolling the country’s troubled Oromia region and the capital, Addis Ababa, following a week of unrest in which 166 people were killed and more than 2,000 arrested, after a popular singer was shot dead.
In Oromia, 145 civilians and 11 members of security forces were killed, Girma Gelam, deputy police commissioner in the region, told the state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate. Another 10 people were killed in the capital, eight of them civilians.
The internet was cut last week to try to dampen the protests and made it difficult for rights monitors to track the scores of killings.
Update: It’s now day seven of #Ethiopia‘s national internet shutdown as the country enters a new work week offline; real-time network data show national connectivity at just 11% of ordinary levels with ordinary users remaining cut off from the world ?
? https://t.co/y5ATw7JHAh
June 15: Technical teams continue meetings
\tFollowing the first day of talks between Somalia and Somaliland, technical teams led by the respective leaders have entered talks as of today, according to reports.
Whiles the host, Djibouti president Omar Guelleh is sitting through the talks, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia – who was part of the opening ceremony over the weekend, has since returned home.
June 14: Djibouti hosts Somali – Somaliland summit
\tDjibouti president said it was time for a rebirth of the Somali nation as leaders of Somalia and Somaliland met in Djibouti city on Sunday.
BULAWAYO-BASED Afro-jazz artiste Agenda Maphosa said there was need for music companies to help up-and-coming artistes with mentorship and sponsorship so that they quickly find their feet in the music industry. BY SHARON SIBINDI Maphosa told NewsDay Life & Style yesterday that a lot of talent was lost as most gave up due to lack of support. “Without money in the music industry, you cannot go anywhere no matter how good your music is. Some young stars end up smoking, drinking and engaging in other bad habits because of depression after finding it hard in their music careers,” he said. “I wish our arts management could find a way to bring them closer, have programmes that also scout for talent from suburbs, small townships or anywhere around the country. I am very concerned about young up-and-coming stars because they are the future.” The 25-year-old artiste-cum-hairdresser said he had faced challenges during the production of his second album Ekhaya Kuse Khaya. The album features an array of music legends among them Albert Nyathi, Machanic Manyeruke, Jeys Marabini, Iyasa, Charles “Mahlaba” Banda and Sotja Moyo. “I love music with all my heart, but things are getting tight especially if one does not have a proper sponsorship or a promoter as a lot of things are needed especially when you want a properly packaged album,” he said. “There is a lot that is required, from recording fees, payment for instrumentalists, transport, and money to upload music online.” Maphosa said for his second yet-to-be-finished album which will be launched soon, he had already spent over R5 000. “I wish there was an organisation that could listen to up-and-coming artistes and support them since other artistes ask for bribes so as to assist those in need of help. A producer in Harare almost cheated me of my US$150 promising and giving high hope to facilitate a collaboration with Ammara Brown,” he said. “Then another producer in Bulawayo took my US$40 promising to fix errors on my album which he never delivered according to the agreement and my money was not paid back.” Maphosa said he had realised the importance of good management in the music industry for one’s dream to come true. “I am urging young up-and-coming artistes to get mentorship and management to be protected from such things,” he said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa showed his support for a South African restaurant on the Steenberg Vineyards this past weekend.
Boko Haram was responsible for the brutal deaths of more than 400 people in and around Maiduguri in northeast Nigeria in February and early March 2014. Among its victims were children watching a soccer match and dozens of male students at a public college in Yobe State, many of whom were burned or shot to death. The group was also blamed for a rush-hour bomb set off in April at a bus station in Nyanya, a city on the outskirts of the capital, Abuja, that killed more than 70 people.
In April, the group kidnapped about 280 girls from a school in the northeast with the intention of making the girls sex slaves. The mass kidnapping—and the governments slow response and inept attempts to rescue them—sparked international outrage and anti-government protests in Nigeria. A social media campaign sparked widespread news coverage of the kidnappings and put pressure on Jonathan to take action against Boko Haram.
In a videotaped message released in early May, Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, said the group planned to sell the abducted girls and threatened to give their hands in marriage because they are our slaves. We would marry them out at the age of 9. We would marry them out at the age of 12. He also reiterated the groups core belief that Western education is a sin.
The U.S. sent a team from the State Department, the F.B.I. and the Pentagon, 80 troops, and manned and unmanned surveillance drones to Nigeria in May to help to locate the girls. Another 68 girls were kidnapped in June in Borno state; 63 of the girls escaped weeks later.
While the world was focused on the search for the girls, violence attributed to Boko Haram continued. About 100 people were killed in a suicide attack in Jos and dozens more died in a series of attacks on villages in May. The violence continued into the summer, with the military stepping up its attacks on the group. In late June, a bomb attributed to Boko Haram killed about two dozen people in Abuja, the capital. The attack on the city, which is located in central Nigeria,
Angry protests were reported Tuesday in the capital, Addis Ababa, after Hachalu Hundessa was shot dead on Monday.
A well-known Oromo activist, Jawar Mohammed, was among 35 people arrested during the latest unrest.
AP
June 30: Ethiopia arrests Oromo activist Jawar Mohammed, OMN shut down
\tThe arrest of prominent Ethiopian pro-democracy activist Jawar Mohammed has been confirmed by multiple sources from the country.
The arrest comes in the wake of mass protests against the shooting and killing on Monday night of a famed Oromo musician and activist in Addis Ababa.
VIDEO
Jawar vs. Abiy: Season II
\tThe latest incident is the second major face off between Jawar and state security agents.
(Photo by Eric BARADAT / AFP) (Photo by ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House approved a bill Friday to make the District of Columbia the 51st state, saying Congress has both the moral obligation and constitutional authority to ensure that the city’s 700,000 residents are allowed full voting rights, no longer subject to “taxation without representation.”
Holmes Norton held a news conference to discuss “efforts to protect D.C.’s local laws during the FY2019 appropriations process, including gun safety, anti-discrimination, labor, marijuana and abortion.Ó (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
D.C.’s population is larger than those of Wyoming and Vermont, and the new state would be one of seven with populations under one million, she said.
Opponents, mostly Republicans, called the bill a power grab for the firmly Democratic city, and said the nation’s founding fathers intended the capital to be separate from the other states.
(Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The bill also would reduce the size of the federal district to a tourist-friendly area that includes the White House, the Capitol, the Supreme Court, federal monuments and the federal executive, legislative and judicial office buildings adjacent to the National Mall and the Capitol.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser invoked Douglass as she hailed the “historic vote” bringing the city closer than ever to becoming the 51st state.
