UNESCO Director-General urges probe into killing of Ethiopia journalist

Jurist | UNESCO | Director-General condemns murder of journalist Dawit Kebede in Ethiopia. 

The Director-General of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) , Audrey Azoulay, has called for an inquiry into the killing of journalist Dawit Kebede, who was found dead in Mekelle, the capital of the Ethiopian region of Tigray, on 19 January.

“I condemn the killing of Dawit Kebede. I call on the authorities to investigate this crime and bring its perpetrators to justice,” said Audrey Azoulay. “Impunity must not be allowed to embolden those who use violence to stop journalists from doing their job.”

Kebede, a journalist working for Tigray regional state television, was found dead in a car along with his friend, Bereket Berhe. Both had been shot in the head.

Kebede was a journalist for a Tigray regional state television outlet. Police allegedly detained Kebede on January 16 and questioned Kebede about his outlet’s coverage of the November conflict between federal troops and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, an independent non-profit organization, echoed Azoulay’s statement. It too called upon Ethiopian authorities to conduct an investigation to “determine if it [the killing] was motivated by his work, and hold those responsible to account.”