ESAT English News

Sudanese militia arrests 1500 illegal migrants near Libyan border

ESAT News (January 9, 2016) Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Sunday said it has intercepted the smuggling of 1500 illegal migrants on the Sudanese-Libyan border during the last seven months, according to a report by Sudan Tribune. Sudan is considered as a country of origin and transit for the illegal migration and human trafficking. Thousands of people from Eritrea ...

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Ethiopia: Hailemariam Desalegn admits sever forex crunch

  ESAT News (January 9, 2017) Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on Monday admits the country has faced foreign currency crunch for the past three years. The titular PM’s remark came in sharp contrast to several statements previously made by himself and other government officials denying that  foreign currency crisis was not an issue in Ethiopia’s struggling economy. The Prime ...

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Ethiopia: Eight soldiers killed in a fight with guerilla groups

  ESAT News (January 6, 2017) Eight regime soldiers have reportedly been killed in a fight with guerrilla groups operating in western Ethiopia. A human rights activist for the Benishangul Gumuz region of Ethiopia, Halid Nassir confirmed to ESAT the ongoing fight between regime forces and guerrilla groups operating in the area. Nassir said 12 people have been detained following ...

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Stanford summit to address crisis in Ethiopia

  ESAT News (January 6, 2017) A two-day summit at the Stanford University will bring scholars, activists and varied political groups to come up with suggestions to resolve the multifaceted problems in Ethiopia. Abebe Hailu, chair of the Ethiopian American Council and organizer of the summit told ESAT that issues of land and border, human rights press freedom and aid ...

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UK scraps £5 million foreign aid for Ethiopia’s “Spice Girls”

ESAT News (January 6, 2017) Britain says it has ended millions of dollars in funding for an Ethiopian girl band, amid growing criticism at home of overseas aid, the Associated Press reported. Yegna, sometimes called “Ethiopia’s Spice Girls,” addresses women’s issues in the East African country. The Associated Press quoted a statement Friday from the Department for International Development as ...

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Ethiopia: Up to 70,000 detained in Oromo region alone

  ESAT News (January 5, 2017) The Ethiopian regime announced on Wednesday that it has released 10,000 prisoners in the Oromo region but local opposition political party says up to 70,000 people still remain in jail. Mulatu Gemechu of the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress told the Associated Press that an estimated 60,000 to 70,000 people have been detained in the ...

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Ethiopia: Prices of imported goods skyrocketing, inflation at 8.2%

  ESAT News (January 5, 2017) The foreign currency crunch in the country has resulted in a surge in the price of imported goods, according market analysts. Businesses also reported a deep decline in the amount goods imported from abroad due to the severe shortage of foreign currency. The regime is forced to import only essential items such as medicines ...

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CPJ calls for release of jailed journalists

ESAT News (January 5, 2017) The New York based defender of the rights of journalists called on the immediate release of two Ethiopian journalists sentenced to prison terms on Tuesday by a court in Addis Ababa. The Committee to Protect Journalists also condemned the prison sentences handed down to  journalists Khalid Mohamed and Darsema Sori from the Ethiopian faith-based station ...

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Ethiopia: Bomb explosion hit a hotel in Bahir Dar

  ESAT News (January 4, 2017) A grenade explosion hit the Grand Hotel in Bahir Dar Wednesday night, eyewitnesses told ESAT. No party claimed responsibility for the explosion that happened at 8:00 p.m. local time. No casualties have been reported so far. There has been a campaign against the staging of a musical concert at the Hotel by the locals ...

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Ethiopia: A micro-finance project run by ruling party engages in high interest loan disbursement  

  ESAT News (January 4, 2016) The Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution run by the ruling TPLF and financed by government banks and international development funds is providing high interest mortgage loans, in contravention to its stated objective of providing low interest loans to poor communities in Tigray. A veteran and founder of the TPLF, Asegede Gebreselassie, wrote an article ...

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