Three church officials declared themselves archbishops last month, leading to protests that have killed at least 30 people. Access to social media platforms has been restricted in Ethiopia, the Internet watchdog NetBlocks says, after violent protests sparked by a rift within the country’s Orthodox Church. Access to Facebook, Messenger, TikTok and Telegram has been severely restricted, NetBlocks said on Twitter late on Thursday, citing network data it had collected. The Ethiopian state has traditionally maintained close ties to the Orthodox Church, to which more than 40 percent of the population belongs. The Orthodox Church insisted Sunday’s protest would go ahead and said the government’s ban constituted “a declaration to destroy the church once and for all”.

Source: Ethiopian News February 11, 2023 00:13 UTC