Ethiopia PM meets leader of opposition Ginbot 7 in United States

Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed on Thursday met with the leader of Patriotic Ginbot 7 (PG7), an opposition group that had been previously designated as a terrorist organisation.

Abiy, who is currently in the United States to rally the Ethiopian diaspora to support ongoing reforms in the country, met Berhanu Nega at the Watergate Hotel in Washington D.C. Details of the meeting are yet to emerge, but it should be recalled that Abiy also met the co-founder of PG7, Andargachew Tsige, soon after his death sentence was rescinded in May.

PG7 which has since been removed from the list of terrorist organisations by parliament, announced in June that it had suspended armed operations, saying the ongoing reforms had convinced it to return to Ethiopia to pursue a peaceful struggle.

Abiy’s six day trip, which will be spent between Washington, Los Angeles and Minnesota has been dampened by news of the death of the project manager of the country’s flagship dam project.

Abiy, who received news of the death of Engineer Simegnew Bekele as he arrived in the US, said he was ‘shocked and saddened’ by the development.

“PM Abiy is saddened & utterly shocked to hear the death of Eng. Simegnew Bekele. PM Abiy received this heart wrenching news with great sorrow as he arrives in the US. Police is conducting investigation. PM Abiy offers his condolences to his family & the Ethiopian people,” Fitsum Arega, Chief of Staff at Office of the Prime Minister said on Twitter.

PM Abiy is saddened & utterly shocked to hear the death of Eng. Simegnew Bekele. PM Abiy received this heart wrenching news with great sorrow as he arrives in the US. Police is conducting investigation. PM Abiy offers his condolences to his family & the Ethiopian people.#Ethiopia

— Fitsum Arega (@fitsumaregaa) 26 juillet 2018