Additional members of the republican guard corps, of which its purposes are to protect the Prime Minister, his deputy or other senior officials, have graduated after completing a comprehensive training.
On their graduation, the chief of the Republican Guard, Major General Birhanu Bekele said the new members have been receiving an extensive and sophisticated training both abroad and in the country, for several months. He, however, did not indicate either the name of the country or the nationals that trained them.
The guards, after completing a six-month training abroad, have been given an additional six-month training in Wondo Tika. The training was offered as a complementary training that would help them further enhance their prior trainings, which match the environment and landscapes they will find themselves in and be capable of discharging their missions in a difficult situation.
The Major General further highlighted that the latter training was conducted jointly with the Special Operations General Division of the National Defense Force. And according to the Chief of the unit, these new graduates have been equipped with materials required to effectively perform their duties.
The latest graduates are the third batch to graduate since the unit was established in 2018, with the aim to defend Ethiopia’s constitution and constitutional order, specifically by protecting the PM, his deputy as well as other officials at the highest level.
In its specific objective, the Republican Guard is mandated to use any means necessary.
The Republican Guard was established in 2018, following an explosion of a hand grenade in the middle of a crowd in Addis Ababa on June 23, 2018. Alongside the June 2018 attack, the Office of the Prime Minister linked the establishment of the Republican Guard to other disturbances taking place in Ethiopia.
The unit is accountable only to the Prime Minister.
