Two former senior intelligence officers arrested

December 9, 2018 – The Federal Attorney General of Ethiopia announced that he had arrested two former senior intelligence officers following charges of human rights violations.

The arrested individuals were identified as Measho Kidane and Hadush Kbada. The circumstances in which they were arrested have not been revealed.

The Ethiopian government led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a crackdown a few weeks ago on alleged suspects of corruption and abuse of power.

To date, more than sixty former officials have been arrested for corruption and abuse of power.

Most of those detained for corruption belong to the state-owned company Metals and Engineering Corporation (METEC), including former director Major General Kinfe Dagnew.

A number of former leaders of the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) were also arrested for abuse of power, including his deputy head, Yared Zerihun.

Major General Kinfe Dagnew and Yared Zerihun are currently on trial. Major General Kinfe Dagnew was accused of corruption and mismanagement involving billions of Ethiopian Birr while he was at the head of METEC.

Yared Zerihun, meanwhile, appeared in court this week charged with the deaths of detainees, as well as illegally hoarding property and money.

The ongoing crackdown has earned the new Prime Minister substantial support and praise from the Ethiopian public.

However, some critics are crying foul, accusing the current government of targeting only selectively certain parts of the country, especially the TPLF (Tigray People's Liberation Front) and its supporters. These groups believe that the current campaign turns a blind eye to people who were also part of the previous system, including many people currently holding positions of power and influence.

A huge gathering took place in Mekelle this weekend, where Dr Debretsion Gebremichael, leader of the TPLF and administrator of the Tigray region, accused the central government of targeting the Tigrayans and issued his strongest warning to the day.