(Mr. Abiy is also Oromo.) Authorities also shut down the internet and arrested more than 9,000 people, according to the state-run Ethiopian Human Rights Commission. Mr. Abiy said in a state television interview this week, “We are not going to lift our hands every time someone shouts asking to affirm their existence.”But Mr. Abiy also warned regional officials that “they will not have legitimacy” if they don’t participate in the next national elections. Authorities on Monday barred some local and foreign reporters from traveling to the region, confiscating their documents, laptops and phones at the airport. In many parts of the region, authorities said nearly 100 percent of registered voters had cast their ballot hours before polling stations closed.

Source: Ethiopian News September 10, 2020 18:01 UTC