Ethiopian PM confirms deaths in unrest sparked by killing of popular singer

Protests took place in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, on Tuesday after musician Hachalu Hundessa was shot dead a day earlier
Crowds gather in in St Paul, Minnesota, to protest the death of musician Hachalu Hundessa, who was shot and killed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Getty Images
David Child1 July 2020

Several people have been killed in Ethiopia during unrest sparked by the killing of a popular singer this week, the country's prime minister has said.

Protests reportedly took place in the capital, Addis Ababa, on Tuesday after musician Hachalu Hundessa was shot dead a day earlier.

The 34-year-old singer had been a prominent voice in anti-government protests that led to a change in leadership in 2018, when prime minister Abiy Ahmed took office, ending decades of dominance by ethnic Tigray leaders.

His songs often focused on the rights of the country's Oromo ethnic group, to which both Hachalu and Mr Abiy belong.

His killing was a “tragedy”, Mr Abiy said, vowing that the perpetrators would be brought to justice and declaring that “our enemies will not succeed”.

Hachalu is now set to be buried on Thursday in his hometown in the Oromia region.

Mr Abiy's comments came as police confirmed that three bombs had exploded in the capital on Tuesday. It was not clear whether anyone was killed in the incidents, however.

There was no immediate sign of protests in Addis Ababa on Wednesday and roads were empty.

Internet service has meanwhile been cut again in Ethiopia, where tensions continue to simmer after the government delayed this year’s national election, citing the Covid-19 pandemic.

The poll would have been the first electoral test for Mr Abiy since he came to power.

Abiy has ushered in greater political and economic freedoms in what had long been one of the continent’s most repressive states, and won the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize for ending conflict with neighbouring Eritrea.

But ethnic and political clashes have spiked during his tenure as long-repressed grievances boiled over.

Abiy’s attempts to quash the violence and his emphasis on pan-Ethiopian politics has, in turn, sparked a backlash from some erstwhile supporters, and his ability to impose order may be severely tested when polls are finally held.

A well-known Oromo activist, Jawar Mohammed, was among 35 people arrested during the latest unrest.

Jawar, a once-staunch supporter of Abiy turned vocal critic, was detained along with Bekele Gerba, a leader of an opposition Oromo political party.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT