Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed to ...

Asaminew Tsige ( am, አሳምነው ጽጌ; 1958/1959 – 24 June 2019) was an Ethiopian general who served as chief of the

Amhara Region The Amhara Region ( am, አማራ ክልል, Åmara Kilil), officially the Amhara National Regional State (), is a regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara people. Its capital is Bahir Dar which is the seat of the Re ...

security forces during part of 2019. He had previously been serving a life sentence in relation to an alleged coup attempt staged by Ginbot 7. During his imprisonment, he was allegedly tortured and lost sight in one eye. He was released in 2018 and restored to his prior rank and pension. Asaminew was part of the

Amhara people Amharas ( am, አማራ, Āmara; gez, ዐምሐራ, ʾÄməḥära) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group which is indigenous to Ethiopia, traditionally inhabiting parts of the northwest Highlands of Ethiopia, particularly inhabiting the Amha ...

, which is Ethiopia's second largest ethnic group. He had been known for his hard line ethnic nationalism and was particularly popular among a segment of young Amhara. After his release from prison and appointment to a government post, he has advocated for more autonomy for Amhara and went as far as calling members of his ethnic groups to arm themselves and join local

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

s. Though the International Crisis Group said that his activities helped the rise of the National Movement of Amhara (NaMA), which emerged as a challenger to the Amhara Democratic Party, NaMA was established before the coming of Gen. Asaminew to the government power. Asaminew was accused of being behind an alleged attempted coup in the Amhara Region in 2019. The President of Amhara region

Ambachew Mekonnen Ambachew Mekonnen ( gez, አምባቸው መኮንን; – 22 June 2019) was an Ethiopian politician and economist who served as the president of the Amhara Region of Ethiopia from March to June 2019, when he was assassinated in a coup attempt. ...

was killed during the alleged attempt. In a related event, the Chief of Staff of the

Ethiopian National Defense Force The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) ( am, የኢፌዲሪ መከላከያ ሠራዊት, Ye’īfēdērī mekelakeya šerawīt, lit=FDRE Defense Force) is the military force of Ethiopia. Civilian control of the military is carried out ...

, Gen. Se'are Mekonnen, and his aide, Maj. Gen. Gizae Aberra, were assassinated by a bodyguard, the office of Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed said. Se'are and Ambachew were close allies of the prime minister. Following the alleged attempted coup, he was on the run, with his whereabouts unknown, until he was shot dead by police on 24 June, after 36 hours at large, Ethiopian state television announced.

References

2019 deaths Ethiopian generals Deaths by firearm in Ethiopia Place of death missing Place of birth missing People shot dead by law enforcement officers People killed in the Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present) Year of birth uncertain {{Ethiopia-bio-stub