Ethiopia’s council of ministers has declared a state of emergency in the Amhara region after its leader said he was no longer able to contain a surge in violence between a local ethnic militia and the army.
The office of the prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, announced the emergency today, saying attacks by “armed extremist groups” posed an increasing threat to public security and were causing significant economic damage.
Violence has flared across Amhara over a disputed plan to absorb regional security forces into the national army.
Last year the authorities also tried to stamp out the Amhara militia, called the Fano.
The Fano and the regional security forces played leading roles in the two-year-long civil war with the neighbouring Tigray region and are popular among the Amhara, but the government sees them as a threat to the constitutional order.
This week protesters put up roadblocks while Fano militiamen clashed with military units and took control of some towns, paralysing Ethiopia’s second-most populous region and resulting in an unknown number of casualties.
Flights have been cancelled to Gondar and Lalibela, two tourist hotspots, as the UK and the US issued travel warnings advising their nationals in Amhara to shelter in place and not to travel there.
In several Amhara towns, government officials have fled and the internet has been cut. Live ammunition has been used to disperse protesters and artillery was deployed in civilian areas in the town of Kobo.
