2018 Ethiopian rally grenade attack | |
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Location | Meskel Square, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
Coordinates | 9°00′36″N 38°45′41″E / 9.0101°N 38.7614°E |
Date | 23 June 2018 17:00 (EAT) |
Target | Abiy Ahmed |
Attack type | Attempt assassination |
Weapons | Grenade |
Deaths | 2 |
Injured | 44 |
Motive | Unknown |
Charges |
|
On 23 June 2018, a large popular pro-government rally at Meskel Square for the support of political reform of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, was attacked by an assailant using a grenade.[1] The grenade exploded just 17 metres away from the stage.[2] Shortly afterwards, the assailant was taken away by security officials. The attack was the first attempted assassination of an Ethiopian national leader in modern Ethiopian history, after similar incidents during Haile Selassie and Derg era.
The attack resulted in the deaths of two people and injured 44 other people, although Ahmed was unharmed.[3] Local media reported that the assailant wore a police uniform, and had tried to throw the grenade toward the stage where the Prime Minister and other officials were located.
In September 2018, the national prosecutors charged five suspects in the case with terrorism, connected to the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) who sought its leadership in the country after being outlawed by the EPRDF regime.[3]
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