Afwerki Abraha ( – 13 May 2020) was an Eritrean

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

, and pro-independence rebel fighter during the

Eritrean War of Independence The Eritrean War of Independence was a war for independence which Eritrean independence fighters waged against successive Ethiopian governments from 1 September 1961 to 24 May 1991. Eritrea was an Italian colony from the 1880s until the d ...

. During the 1990s, Abraha became the first Eritrean diplomat to be posted to

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

following Eritrea's independence. Abraha studied political science and chemistry in the

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

, where he became a chemist. He then moved to the former

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

. In 1975, Abraha left Germany to join the Eritrean separatist rebels in the ongoing

. Eritrea achieved independence in 1993. Following the war, Afwerki Abraha became a diplomat. During the 1990s, Abraha became the first Eritrean diplomat to be posted to Ethiopia. In 1996, Abraha was stationed in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where he served in the Embassy of Eritrea from 1996 until 2001. Abraha's wife, Fatina Ahmedin, an Eritrean artist and former rebel fighter, was struck by a car in London, and became

paralyzed Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 50 ...

from the accident. As a result, couple decided to permanently remain in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

so Ahmedin could receive medical treatment. Abraha remained her caretaker for more than 20 years. Afwerki Abraha died from

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in England The COVID-19 pandemic was first confirmed to have spread to England with two cases among Chinese nationals staying in a hotel in York on 31 January 2020. The two main public bodies responsible for health in England are NHS England and Public ...

at a London hospital on 13 May 2020, at the age of 71. Abraha, who had no pre-existing health conditions, had been hospitalized in the

intensive care unit 220px, Intensive care unit An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensive treatment unit (ITU) or critical care unit (CCU), is a special department of a hospital or health care facility that provides intensiv ...

for coronavirus treatment for the previous month.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abraha, Afwerki Eritrean diplomats Eritrean chemists Eritrean People's Liberation Front members Eritrean expatriates Expatriates in the United Kingdom Eritrean emigrants to the United Kingdom Expatriates in the Soviet Union 1940s births 2020 deaths Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in England