Ethiopia Protest Deaths Rise to 67, Police Make 170 Arrests

(Bloomberg) -- More than 170 people were arrested in Ethiopia after days of protests that resulted in 67 deaths, according to Amnesty International.

Houses were looted and burned in the towns of Dire Dawa and Adama, in the Oromia region, the Ethiopian News Agency reported, citing the respective city administrations. More arrests are expected as investigations continue.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who was awarded the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, called for calm and pledged to bring to justice the perpetrators of the ethnic and religious violence that led to the burning of churches, destruction of property and loss of life.

Ethiopia deployed the military on Friday to restore order in parts of Oromia following protests that began Wednesday. The protests broke out after Jawar Mohammed, who heads the Oromia Media Network, said the government ordered the withdrawal of his security personnel, endangering his life.

Roads were blocked, property destroyed and 67 people have died, Amnesty International said in a text message on Saturday.

Oromia was the center of protests in the years before Abiy came to power. He has pledged multiparty democracy, emboldening some political groups to call for greater regional autonomy.

Ethiopia is scheduled to hold general elections next year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Samuel Gebre in Abidjan at sgebre@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Malingha at dmalingha@bloomberg.net, Jacqueline Mackenzie, Tony Czuczka

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