As violence surged across Amhara some former allies of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed such as Gedu Andargachew a former Amhara president and federal foreign minister chastised Abiy and his government for having not 'learned from the mistakes of the past five years' by always resorting to military means (AC Vol 63 No 6 Rivals set out their minimum conditions)...
These accusations have underlined growing differences between groups associated with Deputy Prime Minister Demeke and National Security Adviser Gedu Andargachew within the Amhara PP branch...
They had included four leading Amharas: Demeke Mekonnen Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs; Gedu Andargachew current National Security Adviser; Agegnehu Teshager president of the Amhara region; and Temesgen Tiruneh Director General of the National Intelligence and Security Service; and a similar group of Oromos Shimelis Abdisa Oromo region president; Fekadu Tesema head of the Oromo PP; Adanech Abebe mayor of Addis Ababa; and Addisu Arega former head of the Oromo Democratic Party Central Committee office...
And days after fighting began in Tigray Abiy increased the power of leading Amhara figures in government by adding the post of Foreign Minister to Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen's portfolio moving Gedu Andargachew from foreign affairs to the post of National Security Advisor and appointing former National Security Advisor and Amhara President Temesgen Tiruneh as intelligence chief...
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Abiy's plenipotentiaries to persuade neighbouring countries of the rightness of his cause include: Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen now also Foreign Minister who has visited Uganda and Kenya; former Foreign Minister now National Security Adviser Gedu Andargachew who went to Djibouti; and President Sahle-Work Zewde herself who attempted to bring round Khartoum...
Abiy appointed Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen foreign minister and moved Gedu Andargachew from foreign affairs to National Security Advisor...
Ethiopia's Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew losing patience with what many of his compatriots consider to be Washington's biased mediation in the negotiations described US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin's call for work on the dam to be suspended as 'diplomatically incorrect'...
The same can be said for Ethiopia's northerly dispute which saw Abiy President Issayas Afewerki of Eritrea Debretsion and Amhara president Gedu Andargachew pose together on 7 January at the opening of an Ethiopia-Eritrea border crossing...
The Amhara President Gedu Andargachew remains in office despite a perception that he was a key protagonist in unrest that involved mobs attacking Tigrayans and their property in Gondar...
The President of Amhara Region Gedu Andargachew appears more likely to lose his position than to lead a process of healing dialogue...
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