On Thursday afternoon, five high level officers of the Ethiopian Military appeared before cameras in what was thought to be an unusual occasion for the media shy Ethiopian Defense Forces. It seemed more like an introduction to the public. The list of the military brass included the head of the Northern Command, Getachew Gudina (Maj. Gen.), head of the Defense Intelligence, Hassan Ibrahim (Leut. Gen.), Head of Special Operations, Molla Hailemariam (Leut. Gen.), head of the Western Command, Asrat Denero (Maj. Gen.) and head of the Eastern Command, Zewdu Belay (Maj. Gen.).
More than 60 military commandos who decided to match on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) and raise their issues regarding pay and benefits were sentenced to serve five to 14 years of imprisonment by the Martial Court of the Federal Defense Force. While the 66 out of the more than 200 military commandos were sentenced to imprisonment, the remaining were punished through administrative measures.
The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) said that it is dismayed with the latest deployment of government military forces to West Oromia where its armed force is said to be activewithout the knowledge of party and a joint forum it formed with the Government of Ethiopia, The Reporterhas learnt.
Launched in 2011 with a plan to be finalized in five years, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) still has four more years to go before completion marking 11 years, if not more.
A clash in Moyale town along the borders of Somali and Oromia regional states has claimed the lives of 34 and has left 161 people critically injured, The Reporter has learnt.
Following months of controversies with regards to the procurement of wheat, the Government of Ethiopia is to procure another batch of wheat amounting to 400,000 tons.
In a bid to prevent the public from a devastating health consequences attributed to tobacco products, the Ethiopian government is set to introduce a stringent law that will restrict the tobacco industry from having any interference and interaction with government officials mainly responsible for the adoption of public health policy and implementations.
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Interview
Peter Maurer, the President of the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) made a two-day visit of Ethiopia this week. While in the capital, the former Switzerland diplomat spoke to local government and African Union officials on areas of migration and displacement crises.
Nirit Takele is an Ethiopian-born Jew who was born and raised in Ethiopia until 1991, when she made Aaliyah – the journey of moving to Israel – alongside 14,000+ Ethiopian Jews, including her family. However, this was no ordinary relocation; they left under a covert operation called ‘Operation Solomon’, led by the Israeli government, with an objective of secretly transporting thousands of Ethiopian Jews to Israel in a time limit of 35 hours.
Reach for Change has been operational in Ethiopia since 2015. The group helps develop the local social entrepreneurs find solutions to some of the social issues in the nation.
Mel Oluoch (PhD) is the new regional director of Sasakawa Africa Association based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Here, he reflects with The Reporter’s Samuel Getachew on his own career, the work of Sasakawa, on helping develop the African agricultural scene, on the challenges, successes, on the lived experiences of other nations and in the areas of nutrition and better health within the continent. Excerpts:
Mulugeta Tafesse is a visual artist, art critic and theoretician. He is also the author of the book ‘Towards African Mimesis: Regarding East Africa’s Art Scene Now’. Mulugata graduated from Ale School of Fine Art and Design in 1980, obtained his masters at Higher Institute of Fine Arts in Sofia, Bulgaria, a postgraduate degree from the National Higher Institute for Fine Arts in Antwerp (Be.), and then his PhD from La Laguna University in Spain.
Shane Quinonez (MD) is a clinical geneticist based in Michigan, in the United States. For the last four years, he has been coming to Ethiopia, helping build the local healthcare sector.
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