ETHIOPIA
And Then They Fall
Ethiopia’s march forward under new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed continues, as a controversial regional leader accused of gross human rights violations resigned in the wake of the deployment of federal troops to restore order in the state of Somali.
AfricaNews cited the Ethiopia Somali News Agency (ESNA) as saying that Abdi Mohamoud Omar, aka Abdi Illey, has officially resigned. He will be replaced by the region’s Finance Minister Ahmed Abdi Ilkacase.
Violence broke out in the regional capital of Jijiga on Saturday as mobs targeted properties owned by ethnic minorities, Reuters reported. Central government spokesman Ahmed Shide said regional officials had claimed the center was illegally forcing them to resign and ordered a regional paramilitary force to organize the attacks.
The Somali state has long been troubled by unrest and ethnic strife. But its regional government came into focus recently when a Human Rights Watch report held Illey responsible for “a brutal and relentless pattern of abuse, torture, rape, and humiliation” at the region’s Jail Ogaden. The report followed a speech by Abiy in which he spoke out against torture as a form of state terrorism.
No comments:
Post a Comment