Ethiopia declared a state of emergency, a day after Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn resigned following months of protests by opponents of his government. A state of emergency the following year failed to curb the turmoil mainly in the Oromia and Amhara regions -- home to the biggest ethnic groups who say they’re excluded from political and economic power. The EBC statement didn’t provide further details nor a time frame for the state of emergency. Under the EPRDF, a former rebel movement that took power in 1991 after overthrowing a military regime, Ethiopia is a federal state designed to give autonomy to ethnic groups. Activists from both groups claim that minority ethnic Tigrayans, represented by the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front, dominate an authoritarian government.

Source: Ethiopian News February 16, 2018 18:36 UTC