Of Beetles & Angels
The Ethiopian Civil War began on the 16th of January 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, and lasted until the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), a coalition of rebel groups, overthrew the government in 1991.[11] The war left at-least 1.4 million dead.
The wars revolutionaries abolished the monarchy in March 1975 and Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen settled permanently in New York City, New York, USA where several other members of the Imperial family were already based. The other members of the Imperial family who were still in Ethiopia at the time of the revolution were imprisoned. The imprisoned members of the Imperial family included Amha Selassie's father, Emperor Haile Selassie, his daughter by his first marriage, Princess Ijigayehu, his sister, Princess Tenagnework, and many of his nephews, nieces, relatives and in-laws. In 1975, his father, Emperor Haile Selassie, died in detention. In 1977, his daughter, Princess Ijigayehu, died in detention. Members of the Imperial family remained imprisoned until 1988 (for the women) and 1989 (for the men).
The Derg eliminated its political opponents between 1975 and 1977 in response to the declaration and instigation of an Ethiopian White Terror against the Derg by various opposition groups, primarily the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party (EPRP). Like the Derg, it was Marxist. Brutal tactics were used by both sides, including executions, assassinations, torture and the imprisonment of tens of thousands without trial, most of whom were innocent. The Ethiopian Red/White Terror was the "urban guerrilla" chapter of the brutal war. The government fought with guerrillas fighting for Eritrean independence for its entire period in power, as well as with other rebel groups ranging from the conservative and pro-monarchy Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU) to the far leftist EPRP. The Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF), who would become the eventual victor of
The wars revolutionaries abolished the monarchy in March 1975 and Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen settled permanently in New York City, New York, USA where several other members of the Imperial family were already based. The other members of the Imperial family who were still in Ethiopia at the time of the revolution were imprisoned. The imprisoned members of the Imperial family included Amha Selassie's father, Emperor Haile Selassie, his daughter by his first marriage, Princess Ijigayehu, his sister, Princess Tenagnework, and many of his nephews, nieces, relatives and in-laws. In 1975, his father, Emperor Haile Selassie, died in detention. In 1977, his daughter, Princess Ijigayehu, died in detention. Members of the Imperial family remained imprisoned until 1988 (for the women) and 1989 (for the men).
The Derg eliminated its political opponents between 1975 and 1977 in response to the declaration and instigation of an Ethiopian White Terror against the Derg by various opposition groups, primarily the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party (EPRP). Like the Derg, it was Marxist. Brutal tactics were used by both sides, including executions, assassinations, torture and the imprisonment of tens of thousands without trial, most of whom were innocent. The Ethiopian Red/White Terror was the "urban guerrilla" chapter of the brutal war. The government fought with guerrillas fighting for Eritrean independence for its entire period in power, as well as with other rebel groups ranging from the conservative and pro-monarchy Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU) to the far leftist EPRP. The Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF), who would become the eventual victor of