Over 200 Israeli citizens and Ethiopian Jews have been evacuated on a special flight from two cities in the Amhara and Oromia regions impacted by recent violence and flown to the country’s capital Addis Ababa.
The Jewish community in the Amhara region numbers in the thousands.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in a statement that he had ordered the evacuees to be relocated out of war zones and that they will depart for Israel.
Despite recent heavy clashes between the army and local militias, relative quiet has been reported in the Amhara region’s major cities.
The army claims to have retaken control of critical areas, but inhabitants in several smaller towns and rural areas believe local militias remain in command.
Meanwhile the US and the UK have joined hands with three other countries – Japan, Australia and New Zealand – to express concerns over deteriorating security in Ethiopia.
According to a joint statement issued on Friday, recent violence in the Amhara and Oromia regions of the country “has resulted in civilian deaths and instability.”
The UN Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia had previously stated that it was “deeply concerned” by the recent insecurity and urged the government to follow “the principles of necessity, proportionality, and non-discrimination” in implementing a state of emergency declared in response to the violence.
