Ethiopia on Friday appointed a new head of Tigray region, Mulu Nega, one week after parliament voted to remove the executive Addis Ababa deems rebellious.
Mulu Nega’s appointment was announced by PM Abiy Ahmed via Twitter and he replaces Debretsion Gebremichael, whose immunity from prosecution was removed Thursday.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International said Thursday that scores of civilians were killed in a “massacre” in the Tigray region, that witnesses blamed on forces backing the local ruling party.
It stated that the massacre is the first reported incident of large-scale civilian fatalities in a week-old conflict between the regional ruling party, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Also, Witnesses said the attack was carried out by TPLF-aligned forces after a defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian military, though Amnesty said it “has not been able to confirm who was responsible for the killings”.
Abiy ordered military operations in Tigray on November 4, saying they were prompted by a TPLF attack on federal military camps — a claim the party denies.
The region has been under a communications blackout ever since, making it difficult to verify competing claims on the ground.
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