Media: “Extremists shoot Ethiopian local politician

“Our brave and hard-working brother Ahmed Ali… was martyred at the age of 39 by the bullets of anti-peace and anti-unity extremists,” the AMC posted on its Facebook page.

The local politician’s death occurred one month after the end of the state of emergency that was declared last August in a – so far unsuccessful – attempt to crush the uprising in Fano in Amhara.

In early June, two district heads were murdered in the neighboring North Shoa administrative region, also in Amhara.

They were also described as “extremist groups” by local authorities.

In June, the non-governmental organization ACLED, which collects data in conflict areas, recorded “five cases of violence against local officials” in Amhara.

Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country, is plagued by a multitude of local conflicts involving both political and social demands, which are repeatedly punctuated by acts of violence against the civilian population.

In November 2022, the country ended a two-year war in the northern regional state of Tigray – one of the deadliest conflicts in the world.

The Fano, who in this conflict supported the federal army in the fight against the renegade leaders of Tigray – their long-time enemies over disputed territories – feel betrayed by the peace agreement signed by the federal government with the latter.

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