Ethiopia imposes curfew in major northern city amid unrest

A curfew has been imposed in Gonder city in Ethiopia’s northern region of Amhara, local officials disclosed on Monday.

Auto-rickshaws were prohibited from operating outside as from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. the Gonder city administration command post said in a press statement.

It added that bars and night clubs were prohibited from remaining open beyond 9 p.m.

The curfew was imposed amid ongoing protest which starting last week in cities across the Amhara region against a federal government plan to “disarm the region’s special forces.”

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in a statement posted on his social media account earlier on Sunday that the Ethiopian government had plans to incorporate special forces in the country’s 11 regional states into other regional security structures.

This he said was aimed to form a strong and united security structure.

The curfew also prohibited anyone outside authorised security forces structures from moving around with firearms as well as with crude sharp objects.