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Nobel Prize
WorldAfrica

Abiy Ahmed, 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner, says militants, global powers threaten stability in Horn of Africa

  • Ethiopia’s PM Abiy Ahmed won the accolade for his peacemaking efforts, which ended two decades of hostility with Ethiopia’s long-time enemy Eritrea

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Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed takes a picture after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize during the award ceremony in Oslo City Hall, Norway. Photo: NTB Scanpix via AP
Reuters
Militant groups and global military powers both pose a threat to peace and stability in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said on Tuesday after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for forging a peace accord with Eritrea.

Abiy won the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize in October for his peacemaking efforts, which ended two decades of hostility with Ethiopia’s long-time enemy Eritrea.

In a speech delivered at Oslo City Hall before dignitaries including Norway’s King Harald V, Abiy praised the “good will” of Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki and described the two countries’ commitment to peace as “ironclad”.

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Ethiopia’s PM and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Abiy Ahmed Ali receives the Nobel Peace Prize from Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo on December 10, 2019. Photo: NTB Scanpix / AFP
Ethiopia’s PM and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Abiy Ahmed Ali receives the Nobel Peace Prize from Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo on December 10, 2019. Photo: NTB Scanpix / AFP

But Abiy, who at 43 is Africa’s youngest political leader, also spoke of the dangers facing his region.

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“The global military superpowers are expanding their military presence in the area. Terrorist and extremist groups also seek to establish a foothold,” Abiy said, without specifying which countries or groups he had in mind.

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