DC's Ethiopian Community Demonstrates Outside State Dept. Urging Action To Quell The Fighting Between Government And Fano Forces

WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 10: A member of the Washington DC Ethiopian community takes part in a demonstration outside of the U.S. State Department to protest attacks by the Ethiopian government on ethnic Amharas and the Amhara region in Ethiopia on August 10, 2023, in Washington, DC. Since April of 2023, large protests have erupted throughout the Amhara region denouncing the federal government's campaign to dismantle Amhara regional and Fano forces. Residents of the Amhara region have expressed concerns that attacks against the Amhara region and the ethnic cleansing of Amharas that had already been taking place throughout Ethiopia could worsen as a result. Clashes between the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) and FANO fighters erupted as a result shortly afterward. The Ethiopian Government declared a state of emergency in the Amhara region in August 2023 when Fano fighters took control of regional cities during fighting with federal forces. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed responded by deploying tanks, heavy artillery, and multiple divisions of ENDF to the cities of Gonder and Bahir Dar in the Amhara region. It has been reported by multiple sources on the ground in Ethiopia that over 2,000 civilians in Bahir Dar and Gonder have died in the past week as a result of assaults on the towns by the Ethiopian National Defense Forces or ENDF. (Photo by J. Countess/Getty Images)