The Ethiopian Police has reportedly shot dead the suspected mastermind of the failed coup bid in the country’s Amhara region that led to the killing of five senior officials including the national army’s chief of staff and Amhara’s state president, reported BBC.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office had named Amhara security chief Asaminew Tsige as the chief suspect in the attempted coup in the region. According to the police, Tsige was killed as he attempted to escape from his hideout in Amhara’s capital.
On Saturday, Ethiopia’s army chief Gen Seare Mekonnen and retired Major General Gezai Abera were killed at Mekonnen’s residence by his bodyguard in Addis Ababa while trying to foil the coup. In a separate attack, Amhara state president Ambachew Mekonnen and his advisor were shot dead and the state’s attorney general was wounded in Amhara’s capital of Bahir Dar. The attorney general died of his wounds on Monday,
Gen Seare and Amhara governor Ambachew Mekonnen were seen as close allies of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The prime minister has urged all Ethiopians to unite against “evil” forces set on dividing the country.
The Amhara state has declared three days of mourning after the killing in which the northern region’s leader was also killed.
The government announced a full-military funeral to be held on Wednesday in the regional capital Bahir Dar. Flags in the capital Addis Ababa flew at half-mast on Monday to mark the deaths of loyalists.
“All of us will remember the people who lost their lives for our togetherness and unity,” a television announcer said, reading a statement from parliament speaker Tagesse Chafo. “It is a sad day for the whole nation. We have lost people who were patriotic. They are martyrs of peace.”
Internet access has been blocked across Ethiopia since Saturday’s killings.
