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| General Seare Mekonen. Image: EBC |
Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA:
The chief of staff of the Ethiopian army, Gen Seare Mekonnen, has been shot dead by his own bodyguard in the capital, Addis Ababa.
He and another officer died trying to prevent a coup attempt against the administration in Ethiopia's northern Amhara region, PM Abiy Ahmed said.
In Amhara itself, regional governor Ambachew Mekonnen was killed along with an adviser.
The government says the situation is under control after arrests were made.
The prime minister has gone on TV to urge Ethiopians to unite in the face of "evil" forces set on dividing the country.
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| Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed appeared on the state broadcaster, Ethiopian Television, past midnight on Saturday, June 22, 2019. |
Dressed in military fatigues, he told Ethiopians that there “was an attempted coup d’etat” in Bahir Dar and attacks on the icons of Amhara people while they were having a meeting.”
He said that there have been fatalities.
Then he went on to tell Ethiopians that Chief of staff the Defense forces, Seare Mekonnen, was attacked on Saturday evening – apparently in the capital Addis Ababa.
He added that Seare was killed in connection with what he called “coup d’etat” in Bahir Dar. Seare was, according to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, was coordinating a mission in response to the situation in Bahir Dar.
The Prime Minister did not name as to who is behind the “attack” on Ethiopia’s Chief of Staff who was appointed to the position in June 2018 after Abiy Ahmed removed the former chief of staff, Samora Younis.
All he said was that “he was attacked by mercenaries who are close to him,” leaving the identities parties who are said to be responsible for the attack rather blurry.
However, he said that the individuals involved in the attack are in custody. He also claimed that people responsible for the killing are just individuals and it is not the case of one ethnic group attacking the other.
And he pleaded to Ethiopians to refrain from buying into news that not credible and wait for “verified information from the government.”
As well, Abiy Ahmed stated that he has been receiving assistance offers from neighboring countries and said that Ethiopia is at this point capable of dealing with the situation on its own.
From his speech, Abiy Ahmed tends to see “the attack” as an effort to trigger the disintegration of Ethiopia and vowed that it will not succeed. He went on to call on the Defense Force to remain united and defend Ethiopia.
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The United States state department has warned its staff in Addis Ababa to stay inside.
Ethnic violence has hit Amhara and other parts of Ethiopia in recent years.
Since his election last year, Mr Abiy has moved to end political repression by releasing political prisoners, removing bans on political parties and prosecuting officials accused of human rights abuses.
General Seare was killed on Saturday evening at his residence along with another general, Gezai Abera, by the bodyguard who is now in custody, the prime minister's press office says.
The government says it has reason to think the attack was linked to the assassination of the governor of Amhara a few hours earlier in the region's capital, Bahir Dar.
Mr Ambachew was killed at a meeting in his office along with his senior adviser, Ezez Wasie, while the region's attorney general was wounded.
Lake Ayalew has now been appointed as the region's acting governor.
The prime minister's office accused Amhara's regional security chief, Brig-Gen Asaminew Tsige, of plotting the coup attempt. It is unclear whether he has been arrested.
Many of those involved in the coup attempt are under arrest and operations are in progress to detain others, the press office said.
"The coup attempt in Amhara regional state is against the constitution and is intended to scupper the hard-won peace of the region,"
the office added.
the office added.
"This illegal attempt should be condemned by all Ethiopians and the federal government has full capacity to overpower this armed group."
These are tumultuous time for Ethiopia and Prime Minister Abiy, who is already facing increased ethnic tensions.
Chief of staff Seare Mekonnen had only served as head of the military for a year having being appointed by Mr Abiy, who made sweeping changes in the security apparatus when he took office last April.
It is clear there is still significant opposition within the military opposed to the PM's style of leadership.
The killing of Amhara's governor is also a big blow for Mr Abiy, who is credited with installing Ambachew Mekonnen in office.
He was a key ally in Amhara, which is itself facing security problems and clamour from some groups for greater autonomy from the central government.
The first general election since Mr Abiy came to power is supposed to be held next year, but it is very hard to see how this will go ahead in a country that is highly polarised. The atmosphere is just too toxic.
Why is Amhara so important?
The homeland of the Amhara ethnic group is the country's second most populous region and has given Ethiopia its state language, Amharic.
Violence between the Amhara and Gumuz ethnic groups left dozens of people dead last month in Amhara and its neighbouring region, Benishangul Gumuz.
Ethnic violence, typically sparked by land disputes, has displaced nearly three million people across Ethiopia.
Another issue the prime minister is having to grapple with is unrest within the military.
In October, he said hundreds of soldiers who marched to his office to demand a pay rise had wanted to kill him.
Mr Abiy survived a grenade attack at a rally a year ago which killed two people and left more than 100 injured.
Asaminew Tsige was among a group of high-ranking military officers released from prison early last year when the previous government moved to free political detainees in response to public pressure.
The general had been in custody for nine years for allegedly plotting a coup.
According to Reuters news agency, Amhara's top officials had convened Saturday's meeting to discuss open attempts by the general to recruit ethnic militias.
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