Charges against five of the 10 defendants in Ethiopia’s most
high-profile court case have been dropped.
All 10 had been accused of working with terrorist groups.
Six contributors to a blog called Zone 9 and three
journalists were arrested in April last year; one more blogger was abroad and
managed to elude capture.
At least three have been released from prison so far.
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| Ethiopian defendants charged with terrorism (seen above) have had charges against them dropped |
The court case was a contentious issue in Ethiopia and
abroad, with human rights groups arguing the defendants had been singled out
for criticizing the government.
Defense lawyer, Ameha Mekonnen, said the news came as a
surprise, adding they had not even been told to appear in court.
“The prison authorities told me some were released and that
they had gotten a note informing them their case had been discontinued.”