ESAT News (October 5, 2017) The St. Michael Church at the Ethiopian quarter of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem has been closed by Israeli authorities after its roof had collapsed due to construction on the roof top monastery by the Greek Church. There is a long-running dispute among Christian sects as to the ownership of the Deir ...

ESAT News (October 4, 2017) There has been no effort by the regime to return home tens of thousands of Oromos and Somalis who were displaced due to recent ethnic clashes. According to sources who closely follow developments in Eastern Ethiopia, the regime, that stands accused of instigating the violence, has done nothing to return home the over 70,000 thousand ...

ESAT News (October 4, 2017) Two British legal professional associations urge the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Boris Johnson, to call for the release of Andargachew Tsige, an opposition figure in death row in Ethiopia. The president of the Law Society, Joe Egan, and the chair of the Bar Council, Andrew Langdon QC, have written to the ...

ESAT News (October 3, 2017) A rights defender urged the U.S. Congress to ask the National Security Agency and the Department of Defense on the status of the surveillance partnership with the Ethiopian regime to ensure that the U.S. is not facilitating human rights violations in Ethiopia. “It is high time for the US administration and Congress to reckon with ...

ESAT News (October 3, 2017) The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called the arrest of Andualem Aragie, an opposition politician, arbitrary and called for his release. The UN Group, besides demanding Aragie’s release, also said that the political prisoner should be compensated. Mr. Aragie has been behind bars for exercising his political rights, the UN group argued and ...

ESAT News (October 2, 2017) Over 1500 engineering students of Bahir Dar University were expelled from campus following a dispute with University officials over the format and grading of a comprehensive fourth year exam. A change has been made to the grading of a “holistic” examination given to fourth year students. According to the new directive, students will be given ...

ESAT News (October 2, 2017) Scores of people were arrested on Sunday following anti-TPLF protests at the annual Irreecha festival in Bishoftu a.k.a. Debrezeit, 25 miles outside the capital Addis Ababa, according to information received by ESAT. The religious festival on Sunday turned into protest rally with thousands of festival goers chanting anti-TPLF slogans and demanding freedom for the Oromo ...

ESAT News (September 29, 2017) The Federal Police Commission said the army and police force would be deployed at the Irreecha festival this coming Sunday despite earlier statements by the Aba Geda and authorities that said there would be no armed security at the site of the festival in Bishoftu. Police Commissioner, General Asefa Abiyou, told TPLF owned Fana Broadcasting ...

ESAT News (September 29, 2017) More than 93,000 people have reportedly been displaced by flooding in areas in Afar, Jima, South-East and South-West Shewa as well as in zones surrounding the capital Addis Ababa, according to a report by Centre for African Journalists (CAJ). The report said that over 18,600 households have also been affected by the extensive flooding. The ...

ESAT News (September 28, 2017) Reports reaching ESAT from Eastern Ethiopia say about 10,000 Oromos displaced from Somaliland and the Ethiopian Somali Region were headed to Harar and Eastern Hararghe. It brings the total number of people displaced so far close to 80,000. Trucks loaded with the displaced have began arriving in Harar and Hamaresa today. Ethnic violence in Eastern ...