Police arrest Bereket, Tadesse

Bereket Simon, former Government Communication Affairs Minister and Executive Committee member of Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and the erstwhile Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), and Tadesse Kassa, former CEO of TIRET Corporate and Executive Committee member of the EPRDF and ANDM, have been placed under custody, in the early morning hours of January 23, 2019.

Both Bereket and Tadesse were arrested from their homes in Addis Ababa. According to reports, the two former senior officials were arrested in connection with alleged corruption in relation to activities at TIRET.

Bereket was known among other things for his adamant defense of gov actions, including the killings of 193 protesters in Addis by state security forces during the 2005 election massacres. He is also the man who in 2012 announced to the world that Meles Zenawi had passed away.

— Zecharias Zelalem (@ZekuZelalem) January 23, 2019