Ethiopian leader calls on citizens to defend his government as Tigray rebels make gains
CBSN
Johannesburg — It's been nearly one year since Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops in to crush rebellious forces in the country's northern Tigray region. In that time Abiy's standing as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate for ending the war with neighboring Eritrea has been undermined, as those same troops have been accused of committing unspeakable atrocities.
Now there are fears that the Tigrayan army he claimed he would defeat could head towards the capital, Addis Ababa. Over the weekend, fighters from the Tigrayan Defence Force seized control of parts of Dessie, a city just less than 250 miles from Addis Ababa, and captured Kombolcha, with its major airport. With control over those two cities, the Tigrayans effectively control access to a major highway leading to the capital.
In an act of hubris, Abiy claimed that an offensive he launched in October would recapture the Tigrayan capital of Mekele in just 10 days, but that initiative has been left in tatters as the Tigrayan forces make their most decisive advances since they took back Mekele in June.
Noumea — France's president held a flurry of meetings with local representatives in the restive Pacific territory of New Caledonia on Thursday, urging calm after deadly rioting, and vowing thousands of military reinforcements will stay in place to quell what he called an "unprecedented insurrection."
Kathmandu — Nepali climber Phunjo Lama on Thursday reached Mount Everest's summit in 14 hours and 31 minutes, smashing the record for the world's fastest ascent of the mountain by a woman. Climbers usually take days to reach the top of the 29,032-foot mountain, spending nights on its different camps to rest and acclimatize.
New Delhi — Indian justice officials have changed course amid outrage over the bail terms set for a teenager accused of killing two people while driving a Porsche at high speed while drunk and without a license. The 17-year-old son of a wealthy businessman had been ordered to write a 300-word essay and work with the local traffic police for 15 days to be granted bail — a decision that was made within 15 hours of his arrest.
Zurich — A woman jogger was killed by a naked man who was screaming and attacking people in a lakeside park in Switzerland, police said Wednesday. The attack happened Tuesday evening in Mannedorf on Lake Zurich, around 12 miles southeast of Switzerland's biggest city, the Zurich cantonal police said.
Norway, Ireland and Spain said Wednesday they are recognizing a Palestinian state in a historic move that drew condemnation from Israel and jubilation from the Palestinians. Israel immediately ordered back its ambassadors from Norway and Ireland and appeared ready to do the same with its ambassador to Spain.