Spokeswoman Billene Seyoum told journalists the Amhara “coup attempt” was led by local security chief Asaminew Tsige, and resulted in state president Ambachew Mekonnen and his advisor being shot. “Several hours later in what seems like a co-ordinated attack, the chief of the staff of the national security forces Seare Mekonnen was killed in his home by his bodyguard” in the capital, she added. “There are no clear signs of a broader coup attempt in Addis. The security chief Asaminew, accused of being behind the attack in Amhara, was in 2018 released from prison after being held over a 2009 coup plot by the armed opposition group Ginbot 7. The coup attempt comes a year after a grenade explosion at a rally that Abiy was addressing left two people dead.

Source: Punch June 23, 2019 07:07 UTC