Friday, May 28, 2021

#AbiyMustGo#Ethiopia

The Oromo political prisoners will not attend future scheduled court dates until those acquitted by the court are released. Jawar Mohammed, Bekele Gerba, Hamza Borana et al. will join the hunger strike with Tigray for the next two days, says Jawar Mohammed in court today. 
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The court started today with Hamza Borana leading the one minute moment of silence and prayer by all political prisoners for the teenager Amanuel Wondimu who was extrajudicially executed in the public square in front of his mother, father, brothers, sisters, and mass crowd in Dembi Dollo. 
 
During today's court hearing, Jawar Mohammed and Bekele Gerba said that the Oromo nationalists are being tortured in the deserts such as Awash Arba, even though they are said to be free in court. They added, "we have respect for you judges, but you, the judges here, cannot make a difference on your own because you are part of the system.” They said that they will not come to court until the release of those who have been acquitted. 
 
Another matter Jawar Mohammed addressed in court today is that they will go on a hunger strike for two consecutive days. The reason is to show their solidarity and support for the people of Tigray, who are fighting against genocide, rape and starvation. As is known, the people of Tigray have closed their homes and are on a hunger strike in protest of the massacre, rape and widespread abuses since yesterday. They said that Oromo political prisoners in Kaliti also stand by the people of Tigray, who are making harsh sacrifices for their rights.
 
The prosecutor asked a long period of adjournment to provide its statement of claim regarding the hearing of witnesses behind the curtain, in accordance with the last remand of Federal Supreme Court. Then Jawar Mohammed et al. accepted the long period of adjournment asked by the prosecutor. Since court orders and rulings are not being obeyed by the executive branch of the government, particularly on account of the superior order, the political prisoners asked for a 2-5 years long adjournment. However, the court adjourned to June 7th and June 17th for the statement of claim and statement of defense, respectively, and advised the political prisoners not to be absent from the hearings.
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Thursday, May 27, 2021

#AbiyMustGo

 

Ethiopia's Tigray conflict: Biden demands ceasefire and end to abuses


Source BBC

Mr Biden demanded an end to "large-scale human rights abuses". The fighting, now in its seventh month, has killed thousands and forced two million from their homes.

The US president also highlighted the possibility of famine.

The conflict pits the Ethiopian army and its Eritrean allies against a regional Tigrayan force.


It began last November, when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered an attack on forces loyal to the region's former ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), after they had overrun federal army bases.

Mr Abiy declared an end to the conflict after just a month, with the capture of Tigray's capital, Mekelle.

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But more than half a year later, the picture looks very different as fighting continues.

There is no accurate death toll, but it is thought that thousands of people have been killed. More than five million need food assistance, according to the UN.

Ethiopian, Eritrean and TPLF soldiers have all been accused of human rights abuses.

What are the abuses being referred to?

In his statement on Wednesday evening, Mr Biden specifically mentioned "widespread sexual violence". In April, the head of the UN's humanitarian office, Ocha, Mark Lowcock said that it was being used as "a weapon of war" with women and girls being targeted.

The abuses were "unacceptable and must end", the US president said.

Earlier this week, hundreds of people displaced by the fighting were detained after being rounded up by soldiers, eyewitnesses said. Ethiopian military officials dismissed the allegations, calling them fabricated.

The Ethiopian government has accused the TPLF of killing aid workers and looting food.

The US president also said he was "deeply concerned by the escalating violence and the hardening of regional and ethnic divisions in multiple parts of Ethiopia". There are numerous conflicts across the country as Ethiopia prepares for national elections on 21 June.

What has the Ethiopian government said?

The government has not yet responded to Mr Biden's statement.

It did react on Monday to the US decision to impose visa restrictions on Ethiopian and Eritrean officials and others who were accused of atrocities.

The foreign ministry said the move was "regrettable" that could "seriously undermine" US-Ethiopia relations.

In a long Twitter thread on Tuesday, the government argued that while it was rebuilding Tigray, "remnants" of the TPLF continued to destroy the new infrastructure.


What are Eritrean troops doing in Ethiopia?

Mr Biden called on Eritrean forces to withdraw from Tigray, as well as fighters from the neighbouring Amhara region.

In March, Mr Abiy acknowledged for the first time that Eritrean soldiers were in Tigray following months of denial from both countries. The prime minister told MPs that Eritrea had been concerned about attacks from TPLF fighters.

There is a long-standing animosity between Eritrea and the TPLF which stretches back to the 1999-2000 border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea. At the time the TPLF was the leading party in Ethiopia's governing coalition.

Rights groups allege Eritrean soldiers have committed atrocities in towns like Aksum, which include killing unarmed civilians, raping women and the widespread looting of public and private properties.

Two months ago Mr Abiy said the Eritreans would leave, but they have still not withdrawn.

#AbiyMustGo

 

NEWS ALERT: USAID ADMINISTRATOR CONFIRMS PARTNER AID WORKER KILLED IN TIGRAY; SAYS HIS & OTHER AID WORKERS’ DEATH “WILL NOT BE IN VAIN”

#AbiyMustGo#Ethiopia

 #Ethiopia: Safaricom drops interest in Ethio Telcom after securing license

Yesterday, Safaricom said it was now awaiting for clearance before rushing to have a slice of the market currently boasting over 50 million mobile phone users.
"We don't have the exact date when we will enter the market but we are ready,'' Ndegwa said.
The company aims to attract 21 million users for the service in its first year of operations, rising to 33 million in five years.

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Gutu Abera-Hawanawa-New Ethiopian Oromo Music 2021(Official Video)

OROMIA11: MARII Dr. HEENOOK GABBISAA WALIIN HAALA YEROO IRRATTI TAASIFNEE.

#AbiyMustGo#Ethiopia

 

The Nobel Peace Prize winner who's presiding over a humanitarian catastrophe


Tuesday, May 25, 2021

#AbiyMustGo#Ethiopia

 May 25, 2021

AfricaEritrean and Ethiopian soldiers detain hundreds in Tigrayhttps://www.reuters.com/world/africa/eritrean-ethiopian-soldiers-detain-hundreds-tigray-

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Ethiopian soldiers ride on a truck near the town of Adigrat, Tigray region, Ethiopia, March 18, 2021. REUTERS/Baz Ratner

Eritrean and Ethiopian soldiers forcibly detained more than 500 young men and women from four camps for displaced people in the town of Shire in the northern region of Tigray on Monday night, three aid workers and a doctor told Reuters.

The soldiers arrived at around 11 p.m. and loaded hundreds of people onto trucks, the humanitarians and the doctor said, citing witnesses' accounts. Several men were beaten, their phones and money confiscated, one of the aid workers said.

One man who lives in one of the camps, and hid during the incursion, said soldiers broke in and beat men with sticks.

"The soldiers surrounded our camp at night, broke the main gate and started to beat every man using sticks, they hit a 70-year-old and kidnapped a blind one. Only from our camp, Tsehaye elementary school, 400 (people) were taken," he said, requesting anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Ethiopia's military spokesman, the head of a government task force on Tigray and the Tigray regional head did not return messages seeking comment. Tewodros Aregai, interim head of Shire’s northwestern zone, told Reuters he had few details but confirmed "hundreds" had been taken.

Eritrea's Information Minister, Yemane Gebremeskel, said he saw no reason to "round up IDPs" and described the claims as propaganda by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the region's former political party, which has been fighting the federal government since November.

Thousands of people have been killed since the conflict erupted, 2 million have been forced from their homes and 91% of the population of nearly 6 million are in need of aid, according to the latest report by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

On Tuesday morning, dozens of relatives of those taken protested in front of the offices of the U.N. refugee agency, according to footage viewed by Reuters.

Monday's incident comes two months after the March 26 announcement by Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed that Eritrean soldiers would leave Tigray after repeated reports of major rights abuses, including looting, gang rapes, and mass killings of civilians. read more

The Eritreans deny any rights abuses. The United States has repeatedly called for the Eritreans to withdraw. read more

The town of Shire hosts hundreds of thousands of people who have fled western Tigray, which is now being administered by the neighbouring Amhara region. Ethnic Tigrayans say they are being driven out by Amhara forces.

#AbiyAhmedMustGo#Ethiopia

 #Ethiopia: #US Visa restriction will affect Ethiopia's counter-terrorism and other security related operations in the region: Amb. Dina

In his weekly press briefing today, Ambassador Dina Mufti, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the decision by the US to restrict visa for Ethiopian officials will affect Ethiopia's counter-terrorism and other security related operations in the region, the state owned EPA reported.
Ambassador Dina is quoted as saying the decision will have a negative impact on Ethiopia's efforts to prevent terrorism in the region. He further said that the decision is likely to hurt the US government itself, EPA said.
He reiterated Ethiopia's statement yesterday to reconsider its bilateral relations with the United States if the US government's decision is to intervene in Ethiopia's internal affairs and failed to take into account centuries-old friendship between the two countries.
With regard to reports of a joint military exercise between Sudan and Egypt Ambassador Dina said they can hold the said joint military exercises but Ethiopia and Ethiopians are always ready to defend their sovereignty.
Although Sudan and Egypt have been conducting joint military exercises along the border, it should not be a loss to Ethiopia, EPA quoted him as saying. However, if it's meant to affect Ethiopia in anyway, Ethiopia will always be ready to retaliate. The Ambassador further said that the Ethiopian government is acting with faith at this stage.

Monday, May 24, 2021

#Breaking#News

United States’ Actions to Press for the Resolution of the Crisis in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia

The United States has deepening concerns about the ongoing crisis in Ethiopia’s Tigray region as well as other threats to the sovereignty, national unity, and territorial integrity of Ethiopia. People in Tigray continue to suffer human rights violations, abuses, and atrocities, and urgently needed humanitarian relief is being blocked by the Ethiopian and Eritrean militaries as well as other armed actors. Despite significant diplomatic engagement, the parties to the conflict in Tigray have taken no meaningful steps to end hostilities or pursue a peaceful resolution of the political crisis. The United States condemns in the strongest terms the killings, forced removals, systemic sexual violence, and other human rights violations and abuses. We are equally appalled by the destruction of civilian property including water sources, hospitals, and medical facilities, taking place in Tigray. We call on the Ethiopian government to meet public commitments to hold accountable all those responsible for human rights violations and abuses, to protect civilians, and to ensure unhindered humanitarian access. We call for the Eritrean government to live up to its public commitment and immediately return its troops to internationally recognized Eritrean territory. Without an immediate cessation of hostilities and a rapid expansion of humanitarian access, current and significant food insecurity could lead to famine.

The time for action from the international community is now. Today, I am announcing a visa restriction policy under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act on the issuance of visas for any current or former Ethiopian or Eritrean government officials, members of the security forces, or other individuals—to include Amhara regional and irregular forces and members of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)—responsible for, or complicit in, undermining resolution of the crisis in Tigray. This includes those who have conducted wrongful violence or other abuses against people in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, as well as those who have hindered access of humanitarian assistance to those in the region. Immediate family members of such persons may also be subject to these restrictions. Should those responsible for undermining a resolution of the crisis in Tigray fail to reverse course, they should anticipate further actions from the United States and the international community. We call on other governments to join us in taking these actions.

Additionally, we have imposed wide-ranging restrictions on economic and security assistance to Ethiopia and will bring our defense trade control policy in line with them. We will continue humanitarian assistance and certain other critical aid to Ethiopia in areas such as health, food security, basic education, support for women and girls, human rights and democracy, good governance, and conflict mitigation, consistent with available authorities. The United States will continue its existing broad restrictions on assistance to Eritrea.

The United States reiterates its calls for a durable, political solution to the crisis. We are committed to supporting efforts to resolve the crisis in Tigray and help Ethiopians advance reconciliation and dialogue to overcome current divisions.

#AbiyMustGo#Ethiopia