Vol 59 No 21 | ETHIOPIA Push-ups and makeovers 26th October 2018 Even when faced with an attempted coup d’état, Prime Minister Abiy somehow turned it into a public relations triumph After disgruntled – and fully armed – troops marched into Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office in central Addis Ababa on 11 October, initial reports unconvincingly suggested the head...
Vol 59 No 19 | ETHIOPIA Rallies shatter fragile peace 28th September 2018 Ethnic killings, shootings by police and mass detentions rock Addis Ababa as Abiy’s democratic openings trigger ferment Ethiopia's rulers scheduled the triumphant return of two diametrically opposed political movements a week apart in a move that spoke of either breezy confidence or naivety. The events...
Vol 59 No 18 | ETHIOPIA Deep waters 14th September 2018 Abiy is distancing himself from the troubled dam project, which some political opponents are trying to use against him The death of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project manager, Simegnew Bekele, was ruled a suicide by authorities last week, but the announcement has done little to...
Vol 59 No 17 | ETHIOPIASOMALIA Abiy dials down Pax Ethiopia 10th August 2018 Addis's relations with its neighbours may be changing as radically as those on the domestic front. A new deal with Somalia could be in the offing As soon as he was appointed Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed was as eager to embrace peace and normalisation with neighbouring states as to reform the regime at home....
Vol 59 No 16 | ETHIOPIA A flood of rumours 10th August 2018 The death of the great dam’s chief engineer sees an outpouring of grief as regional reactions to Abiy’s radical initiatives gather speed For many Ethiopians, dam engineer Simegnew Bekele was the embodiment of their aspirations for a better future, which explains the widespread shock when he was discovered shot dead...
Vol 59 No 15 | ERITREAETHIOPIA Question on Oromo peace 27th July 2018 What to do about the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and how powerful the rebel faction is, are among the most important 'known unknowns' as the political landscape takes...
Vol 59 No 14 | ERITREAETHIOPIA From the edge of war to the bridge of love 13th July 2018 Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has topped off weeks of revolutionary change by triumphantly making peace with Eritrea The Ethiopian leader's previously inconceivable trip to Asmara on a mission of reconciliation on 8 July has reshaped regional geopolitics and crowned Abiy Ahmed's premiership with a hugely... READ FOR FREE
Vol 59 No 13 | ETHIOPIASOMALIA A proconsul retires 29th June 2018 The leading representative of the Ethiopian security services in Somalia, Colonel Gebregziabher Alemseged, better known in Somalia as Colonel Gebre, has been recalled. Since 2002 Colonel Gebre had...
Vol 59 No 13 | ERITREAETHIOPIA Abiy scores – so far 29th June 2018 An Eritrean Government delegation arrived in Addis Ababa on 26 June in response to the Ethiopian ruling coalition's latest peace initiative. The dispatch of the fact-finding mission by...
Vol 59 No 12 | ERITREAETHIOPIA Pushback peril for Abiy 15th June 2018 Addis’s radical offer to implement the UN’s ruling on the border is meeting resistance at home and silence in Asmara The Ethiopian government's announcement that it was ready to implement the 2002 border ruling to try and resolve the freeze in relations with Eritrea has met with worrying...