News: #HRW urges stronger #EU action on Ethiopia, warns against “premature normalization” amid ongoing abuses

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has renewed its call for the #European_Union to adopt clearer and enforceable human rights benchmarks in its engagement with #Ethiopia, warning that recent diplomatic and financial normalization risks undermining accountability efforts in the country.

The warning comes amid continuing concerns over violations linked to past and ongoing conflicts in Ethiopia, including in Tigray, Oromia, and Amhara regions, as well as growing political tensions ahead of the country’s scheduled elections in June.

In an interview with Addis Standard, Laetitia Bader, Deputy Africa Director at Human Rights Watch, said the EU’s decision to resume budget support to Ethiopia despite unresolved accountability concerns raises “serious questions” about its commitment to previously stated conditions tied to the 2022 #Pretoria peace agreement.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56623

News: #NRC warns global aid under strain as war on Iran drives costs up; alarm a caution for #Ethiopia’s humanitarian needs

The warning carries particular urgency for Ethiopia, where humanitarian needs remain among the highest globally.

Between 15.0 and 15.9 million people, around 10 to 15 percent of the population, are expected to face Crisis (IPC Phase 3) or Emergency (IPC Phase 4) levels of acute food insecurity by mid-2026. Ethiopia is also projected to account for more than 10 percent of global food assistance needs among monitored countries.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56627

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲’𝐬 𝐓𝐨𝐩 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝

RSF Death Sentence | Ethiopia Press Freedom Concerns | Tigray Financial Crisis Deepens
Click here to watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxF5LRSrjOc

“They are ready to defend it by any means”: Lavrov says #US interventions in #Iran, #Venezuela driven by oil

Addis Abeba - Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused the United States of pursuing military interventions in resource-rich countries such as Iran and Venezuela to secure control over oil, warning that such actions are eroding international law.

In an interview with Russian state television, which was also published on the Russian Foreign Ministry website on Friday, Lavrov said Washington prioritizes its own interests above all else.

“The United States has officially declared that no one can dictate to it. It cares only about its own well-being and is ready to defend that well-being by any means - coups, kidnappings or assassinations of leaders of countries that possess natural resources the Americans need,” he said.

Lavrov added that US actions in countries such as Iran and Venezuela are openly tied to energy interests.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DLVukF9AD/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Pirates hijack oil tanker off the coast of #Somalia

Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker with 17 crew that was sailing near the Somali coast, according to multiple security officials who spoke to the BBC.

The ship, Honor 25, was overrun late on Wednesday by six gunmen, when it was approximately 30 nautical miles (55 kms) offshore, the officials said.

Until three years ago piracy had almost disappeared in this stretch of the Indian Ocean once notorious for hijackings, but it has since made a comeback with fishing trawlers or container ships targeted.

The seizure of a tanker headed for the Somali capital, Mogadishu, is likely to increase anxiety in the city where petrol prices have already tripled since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran.

It was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil, security officials from Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region told the BBC.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78l26yn981o

News: #Tigray Youth Affairs Bureau urges urgent action as over 200 #Ethiopian youths reportedly face execution in #Saudi_Arabia

The Tigray Youth Affairs Bureau has called for urgent diplomatic intervention after reporting that more than 200 Ethiopian youths detained in Saudi Arabia are facing execution following what it described as a mass death sentence handed down without legal representation.

In a letter addressed to #Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Bureau urged immediate engagement with Saudi authorities and international human rights actors to halt the reported executions and secure protection for the detainees.

Speaking to Addis Standard, #Haish_Subagadis, head of the Tigray Youth Affairs Bureau, said the youths are being held at Khamis Mushait prison in the Abha area of Saudi Arabia’s Asir region after being accused of narcotics-related offenses.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56634

This is a haunting question that cuts to the heart of Ethiopia’s ongoing cycle of political violence.

“What are we giving birth to through all this killing?”

In this powerful reflection from The Standard Signal EP.16, the conversation confronts the brutal reality of unresolved killings, missing justice, and the human cost of political conflict—from Negele Borena to Harar to Ambo.

Two years after the assassination of Bate Urgessa, the questions of accountability and justice remain painfully unanswered.

🎥 Watch the full episode of The Standard Signal on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAXvr9JN3Y8

#BateUrgessa #Ethiopia #JusticeDelayed #HumanRights #PoliticalViolence #TheStandardSignal #NeverForget

“Politics took journalism away from me.”

A powerful reflection on media freedom and political pressure.

Watch the full episode of The Standard Signal on YouTube

🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCF8w7rEYhQ&t=1430s


#TheStandardSignal #EthiopiaPolitics #Misteresillasie #ElectionDebate #PoliticalVoices #WomenInPolitics

This week on Addis Standard Weekly Recap:

From Ethiopia’s shifting political landscape to major global developments, here’s what you need to know.

🎥 Watch now on YouTube

https://youtu.be/iugmn6e_77s?si=qJ3dtxV7HC232XsN

#Iran proposes plan to end war with “red lines” on nuclear issues, Hormuz; FM Araghchi arrives in #Russia talks with President Putin

Addis Abeba — Iran has offered a new proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war through Pakistani mediation, outlining key “red lines” on nuclear issues and maritime access.

Iran’s Fars News Agency reported that Tehran sent “written messages” to Washington via Pakistan detailing “red lines… including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, traveled from Islamabad to Russia, arriving early today.

His weekend itinerary included back-to-back visits to Islamabad and Muscat, Oman, before returning to Islamabad. In Pakistan, he met Army Chief Asim Munir, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar before continuing his trip.

Araghchi is now expected to meet President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg.

https://www.facebook.com/share/1cemx9bQDd/?mibextid=wwXIfr

News: Outreach vaccination, screening campaign reaches conflict-hit, remote communities in #Ethiopia

Health teams deployed under the SLL program have identified and vaccinated more than 3,000 zero-dose children in remote areas, with recent campaigns reaching over 40,000 children across #Afar, #Amhara, #Oromia, and #Tigray regions.

The intervention is also addressing Ethiopia’s large population of “zero-dose” children, estimated at 3.9 million, who have not received routine vaccinations due to conflict, geographic isolation, and limited healthcare access.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56643

#Congo plans paramilitary unit for mines with #US, #UAE funding

The Democratic Republic of Congo will create a paramilitary unit to police its mines with funding from the US and United Arab Emirates, the country’s General Inspectorate of Mines said.

The agency will invest $100 million and deploy as many of 3,000-armed recruits by December, with a goal of 20,000 “mining guards” around the country by 2028, it said in an emailed statement on Monday.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-27/congo-plans-paramilitary-unit-for-mines-with-us-uae-funding

#Commentary: #Axum at a Crossroads: Religious coexistence, quest for equal rights in #Ethiopia’s ancient city

Axum holds a rare global status as a sanctuary for two great faiths. As Mohammedawel Hagos notes, the city “possesses the unique distinction of being at once the cradle of both Christianity and Islam in Ethiopia.” Yet, he contends that this legacy of hospitality has curdled into exclusion. Today, Axum’s Muslims are “denied a mosque, denied a cemetery, and denied the right for their daughters to wear the hijab to school.”

Mohammedawel argues that state policies and distorted historical narratives have superseded Ethiopia’s constitutional religious freedoms.

To restore justice, the author proposes a “Two-Zone Solution" to ensure constitutional rights for all while preserving the sanctity of religious sites.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56637

#Ethiopia: Rights group says repeated court delays undermine strategic lawsuit on IDPs’ return

Human Rights First has criticized repeated delays in a lawsuit it filed before the Federal High Court over the return of internally displaced persons (#IDPs), saying prolonged adjournments are weakening prospects for legal remedies and exposing broader failures in judicial response to displacement-related grievances. The case, first submitted in November last year, has reportedly been adjourned more than ten times, including delays in issuing summonses, which the rights group described as evidence of judicial inefficiency.

Speaking to Addis Standard, Tesfalem Berhe, Human Rights First Director said the lawsuit was conceived as a form of strategic litigation aimed at promoting the use of legal mechanisms, rather than political confrontation, to address grievances linked to displacement. He argued that had the court pursued a more strategic and law-driven approach, the case

https://addisstandard.com/?p=56647

War and neglect fuel deadly measles epidemic in Sudan’s Darfur

Hawa Adam did not expect a childhood illness to kill her son. Ali was two years old when he fell sick on February 25 in Labado, in Sudan’s East Darfur state. He died two days later.

“I thought it was one of the ordinary childhood diseases,” the 37-year-old told Al Jazeera. “I never imagined I would lose my child to this epidemic.”

Hawa attributes his death to the absence of basic medical care – no vaccination, no qualified doctors.
“Most doctors”, she says, “left the area after the war broke out, forcing those with means to seek treatment abroad, in South Sudan or Uganda.”

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/27/war-and-neglect-fuel-deadly-measles-epidemic-in-sudans-darfur