Pro-government rallies have been held on Wednesday in several cities across Ethiopia’s Amhara region in support of the ongoing law enforcement operation in the region.
The demonstrators have called for peace and asked armed militants also known as Fano forces to lay down their arms and engage in peace talks.
Information reaching APA indicates that rallies were held in cities such as Bahir Dar, Debre Markos, Dessie, Woldia, Gondar, and Debre Berhan. Defense forces personnel were deployed to oversee the rallies, but clashes broke out with Fano forces in some areas.
Sources claimed that residents—particularly beneficiaries of the Safetynet program and government housing were coerced to participate in the rallies.
Residents were threatened with losing their jobs and benefits if they refused to participate in the rallies, they maintained.
Residents chanted slogans in support of prime minister Abiy Ahmed although reportedly other shifted to praising Zemene Kassie, a prominent Fano leader in Gojjam.
The rally was dispersed after participants began chanting anti-government slogans.
Similar incidents were reported in Woldia and Dessie, where grenade explosions disrupted rallies. In Hayk, a town 30 kilometers from Dessie, a pro-Fano rally was held. Government forces reportedly detained over 300 youth in the area.
Meanwhile , an anti-government protest was organised in some towns that are under the control of Fano forces.
Fano forces enjoy significant grassroots support in the Amhara region, a factor that has repeatedly hindered government military operations aimed at neutralising them.
When the federal government launched its military campaign in August 2024, it planned to “complete the operation within a few weeks.”
However, Fano forces now control over 70 percent of the region, primarily in rural areas and small towns.
With an estimated 400,000 armed members across the Amhara region, it remains uncertain whether the federal government can impose its terms of “peace” or restore stability.
MG/as/APA