Addis Ababa (AFP) – Police in Ethiopia's war-scarred region of Tigray arrested and baton-charged opposition leaders and supporters ahead of planned demonstrations on Thursday, a protest organiser and a local journalist said. Hailu Kebede, a senior official in the Salsay Weyane Tigray (SaWeT) party, told AFP that security forces had "dispersed the demo with... beatings and arrests." The political challenge to the TPLF comes as the region emerges from a bloody two-year war between the party and Ethiopia's federal government. But the opposition has insisted that it does not need authorisation to hold a peaceful demonstration. Getachew Reda, the head of Tigray's interim government, told state media on Wednesday that opposition parties could not decide "the time...and place" of protests.

Source: Ethiopian News September 07, 2023 11:20 UTC