Police arrests Melaku Fanta, his deputy, 11 others suspected in Corruption

Ethiopian police has arrested  thirteen individuals suspected in involving in corruption, according to the press statement from the Federal Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission.

Melaku Fanta, Director General of the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority with the rank of a Minister is among the detainees. His deputy, Gebrewahed Woldegiorgis is also put in custody.

 Lists of other suspects put under custody are:

1. Eshetu Woldesemayat, Director of Legal issues in Ethiopian Revenue and Customs Authority

2. Asmelash Woldemariam, Head of Kality Customs

Los Angeles’ Little Ethiopia Prepares for 2013 Cultural Street Festival

The 2013 Little Ethiopia Cultural Street Festival in Los Angeles will be held. It was 11 years ago this month on August 7, 2002 that the city of Los Angeles designated through a unanimous council vote that the neighborhood on Fairfax Avenue, between Olympic and Pico Boulevard, be recognized as Little Ethiopia, making it the first street in the United States to be named after an African nation.

For the last 12 years the Little Ethiopia Business Association has been hosting a popular cultural street festival that attracts a diverse crowd from L.A. and beyond to the area.

Ethiopian reggae singer Eyob Mekonnen dies at 37

Fans of the 37-year-old singer helped raise money for his treatment after he had a stroke last Tuesday in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
He was flown to Kenya on Saturday, but he died in hospital on Sunday.

"He has made such a mark on the Ethiopian music scene, bringing a unique and poetic voice with thoughtful lyrics and a beautiful reggae vibe," a posting on his Facebook fan site said.

The page was set up on the social networking site last week called Let Us Pray for Eyob Mekonnen.

Its postings kept fans up-to-date on his condition and appealed for financial help to organise his transfer from hospital in Addis Ababa to the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

"He was one of a kind... humble and extremely loyal," his close friend and manager Eyob Alemayehu, from the music promoter Yisakal Entertainment, told BBC Africa.

"A man of his word, reliable, caring, a strong believer, very up front, talented and much much more," he said.

Nation observes 1st year memorial of late Meles Zenawi

Addis Ababa August 21/2013 The first year memorial of the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi was observed at a national level at Gulele Botanical Center, Addis Ababa in the presence of his family, high level officials and leaders of African countries.

 Speaking on the occasion Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said Meles played fundamental role for the development of the country. Meles’ contribution in the efforts of the government to lift the country out of poverty is significant, Hailemariam said. He said the late PM's work to build climate resilient green economy in Ethiopia is also exemplary to other countries. 

የአዲስ አበባ የባቡር መስመር ግንባታ በተያዘለት ጊዜ እየተከናወነ መሆኑን ኮርፖሬሽኑ አስታወቀ

የአዲስ አበባ የባቡር መስመር ግንባታ በተያዘለት ጊዜ እየተከናወነ መሆኑን ኮርፖሬሽኑ አስታወቀ
አስሩንም የአዲስ አበባ ክፍለ ከተሞች አቋርጦ የሚያልፍ ባለሁለት መስመር ሃዲድ ግንባታ ነው በመከናወን ላይ ያለው፡፡የቀላል ባቡሩ ግንባታ ርዝመቱ ባጠቃላይ 72 ኪሎ ሜትር ይሸፍናል፡፡

በ41 ባቡሮች ስራ የሚጀምረው መስመር በሰዓት እስከ 60ሺ ሰዎችን የማመላለስ አቅም ሲኖረው በቀን ለ18 ሰዓታት አገልግሎቱን ይሰጣል ተብሎ ይጠበቃል፡፡

እያንዳንዱ ባቡር ቢያንስ 3 ፉርጎዎች የሚኖሩት ሲሆን አንዱ ፉርጎ ከ200 በላይ መቀመጫዎች ይኖሩታል፡፡

የአዲስ አበባው ቀላል ባቡር በሰአት 120 ኪሎሜትሮች የመጓዝ አቅም ሲኖረው በባቡር ማቆሚያ ጣቢያ ላይ ቢያንስ በየ5 ደቂቃው ይደርሳል፡፡

A year after long time leader’s death, Ethiopia has seen little change

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Residents in Ethiopia’s capital awoke to the sound of a 21-gun salute Tuesday to mark the first year anniversary of the death of long-time ruler Meles Zenawi.
The ritual underscores the approach Meles’ successors have employed during the last year: a continued lionization of the late prime minister, whose portrait still appears in every public office across the country.
Candlelit vigils and the launch of over two dozen parks were organized across the country for the late leader. In the capital a cornerstone for the Meles Zenawi Memorial Museum was laid in a televised ceremony.
During the ceremony, attended by regional leaders such as the presidents of Somalia and Sudan, Meles was praised as “Africa’s voice.” His successor Prime Minister Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn praised Meles as a “champion of the poor.”
“Meles did a remarkable endeavor in the green economic development. He also led a successful party and government to establish a widely defined democratic system that has recognized and observed rights of individuals and groups at the same time,” Hailemariam said in a speech.
Meles became president in 1991 after helping to oust Mengistu Haile Mariam’s Communist military junta, which was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians. Meles became prime minister in 1995, a position he held until his sudden death last year.
The United States long viewed Meles as a strong security partner and gave Ethiopia hundreds of millions of dollars in aid over the years. U.S. military drones that patrol East Africa — especially over Somalia — are stationed in Ethiopia.

Human, drugs and arms traffickers targeted in operations across Eastern and Southern Africa

KENYA/ZIMBABWE - An operation across Eastern and Southern Africa targeting a range of cross-border crimes has resulted in the rescue of human trafficking victims, the seizure of drugs, guns and stolen vehicles and the recovery of smuggled goods including ivory and diamonds.

Codenamed Usalama – which means ‘safety’ – the operation was led by the Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (EAPCCO) and the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (SARPCCO) with support from INTERPOL.

Among the initial results was the rescue of more than 300 victims of human trafficking and 38 suspects arrested in Ethiopia, with a further 28 human trafficking victims rescued and 15 suspects arrested in Uganda. The operation also resulted in the identification of hundreds of illegal immigrants.

AK-47s were among the guns recovered in Tanzania and Uganda with weapons also seized in Burundi and Swaziland. Thousands of checks against INTERPOL’s stolen vehicle database resulted in a series of matches for vehicles reported stolen from countries including Japan, Malaysia, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Other results include the recovery of 12 elephant tusks in Mozambique and Tanzania, the arrest of a woman in possession of six kg of heroin at Nairobi’s international airport, the destruction of some 100 acres of cannabis plantations in South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, and the identification of a suspected diamond smuggler in Botswana.