NAN
Ethiopia has announced it is releasing an Ethiopia-born British national, who has been in jail for four years after being sentenced on terrorism charges.
Andargachew Tsige was secretary-general of the pro-democracy opposition group, Ginbot 7, based mainly in Eritrea, Ethiopia’s neighbour and regional rival.
Britain has been seeking Andargachew’s release since he was kidnapped in Yemen in 2014 and extradited to Ethiopia.
The state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate reported on Saturday he has been pardoned under “special circumstances’’ with the intervention of the attorney general. Close to 600 other people are also being released with Andargachew, it reported.
“They have repented and are now deemed to be unharmful to the public,’’ the media reported.
New Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was installed in April 2018 and has been making lots of changes in a country considered highly repressive by rights groups.
He has ordered the release of several thousand prisoners, including high-profile politicians and journalists.