Tag Archives: Somali region

Ethiopia: Somali region council lift immunities of 12 former officials

ESAT News (February 7, 2019) The council of the Somali regional government has lifted immunities of 12 former officials over human rights violations and high level corruption. The regional attorney general said in a press statement that the the former officials had a hand in the deadly ethnic violence last July in the regional capital Jigjiga where at least 59 ...

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Somali regional govt lifts curfew in Jigjiga

ESAT News (February 4, 2019) A four day curfew has been lifted in Jigjiga, the capital of the Somali regional state in eastern Ethiopia. The curfew was imposed last Thursday banning public gatherings in the regional capital. The curfew also came on the day a high court in Addis Ababa brought formal charges against the former president of the Somali ...

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Ethiopia: Curfew imposed in Jigjiga as high court charges Abdi Illey et al.

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (January 31, 2019) The Federal high court in Addis Ababa brought formal charges against the former president of the Somali regional state and 46 other regional officials accusing them of planning and financing deadly violence in the region. The charge brought against the former president, Abdi Mohamoud Omar, a.k.a. Abdi Alley and the 46 former ...

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Ethiopia: Federal attorney charges 46 Somali region officials over human rights violations

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (January 25, 2018) The federal attorney general said 46 ex-officials of the Somali region in eastern Ethiopia have been charged in connection with range of human rights violations committed during the reign of Abdi Mohamoud Omar, also known as Abdi Illey, who was arrested in August 2018. Some of the the ex-officials have left the ...

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ONLF says peace and stability should reign before rushing into elections

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (January 3, 2019) The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) said while it is eager to take part in peaceful electoral politics, priority should be given to working for the peace and stability of the country before rushing into elections. Speaking to ESAT, spokesperson and foreign affairs head for ONLF, Hassan Abdulahi said the Front is ...

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Ethiopia: 18 killed in Afar-Issa skirmish

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (December 26, 2018) Eighteen people have been killed in the past two days of fighting between the Afar and Issa pastoral communities as Afari officials accused the government of Djibouti, special forces of the Somali region, the Issa and Gurgura Liberation Front as well as TPLF of igniting the conflict. Thousands have also been displaced ...

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Ethiopia: MeTEC, family of Meles Zenawi implicated in land grab and embezzlement in Somali region

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (November 26, 2018) Officials with the Somali region in Eastern Ethiopia say army generals and officials of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Metals and Engineering Corporation (MeTEC) were involved in the embezzlement of the regional budget and massive land grab for the last ten years. Jamal Diriye, legal advisor to the regional ...

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Ethiopia: ONLF lay down arms, combatants return home

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (November 21, 2018) The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) has officially laid down arms and combatants of the Front have returned to Ethiopia from their base in Eritrea. The move followed a peace agreement reached with the Ethiopian government in Asmara last month. Since its establishment in 1984, the ONLF has been fighting for the ...

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BREAKING: Several mass graves found in Somali region of Eastern Ethiopia

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (November 9, 2018) A day after police told a court in Addis Ababa that they have found a mass grave in an area between the Oromo and Somali regions in Eastern Ethiopia containing the bodies of about 200 people, president of the Somali region told ESAT that investigations were underway on “several” mass graves found ...

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Ethiopia: Ex-president of Somali region attempted to escape prison, police say

by Engidu Woldie ESAT News (October 19, 2018) Police told a court in Addis Ababa today that the ex-president of the Somali region had attempted to escape prison. But Abdi Illey denied the accusation and said police was simply defaming him. Abdi Mohamoud Omar, also known as Abdi Illey, was arrested in August for violations of human rights, inciting ethnic ...

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