26 June 2019 10:52 am
DDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, 25 June 2019 (Daily Mail/AP) -
Ethiopia’s military chief was shot dead by his bodyguard amid a failed coup attempt against a regional government north of the capital, Addis Ababa, the Prime Minister said Sunday.
The abortive coup Saturday in the Amhara region was led by a high-ranking military officer and others in the armed forces, said Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who addressed the nation on state TV at 2.00 am wearing fatigues.
The soldiers attacked a building where a meeting of regional officials was taking place, said Nigussu Tilahun, a spokesman for the prime minister. The regional governor and an adviser were killed, while the Attorney General was wounded, he said.
Later, Army Chief Gen. Seare Mekonnen was assassinated at his home in Addis Ababa, and a retired army general visiting him was also killed, the spokesman said.
The attack in Bahir Dar, the capital of Amhara, was led by a renegade brigadier who had recently been pardoned by the prime minister and remains at large.