Hundreds of supporters in Ethiopia rallied and chanted defending a media owner and activist who claims the government tried to assassinate him.

According to Reuters, about 400 men from the Oromo ethnic group gathered at Jawar Mohammed's home in Ethiopia, showing support for the activist and demonstrating their disapproval for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. Protests broke out Wednesday after Mohammed said police surrounded his house and ordered his bodyguards to leave.

The Ethiopian-born activist, who also has a U.S. passport, used his network to organize protests against the Ethiopian government. Mohammed is the founder of Oromia Media Network, an independent television channel and news website.

His supporters, who call themselves Qeerros, believe Ahmed isn't supporting the Oromo people, despite being from the same ethnic group.

Mohammed told Reuters he doesn't know who ordered police to his house, but he believes somebody was orchestrating his assassination. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Mohammed said two cars pulled up to his home and told his security to pack their stuff and leave the compound quietly.

"The security asked them why they're asked to leave," Mohammed said. "They were told it's for training purposes. The security refused. Then they got a call from commander of VIP protection services who warned them to leave immediately and quietly or face consequences."

Mohammed said the government's plan was to remove his security, unleash civilian attackers and claim it was a mob attack. Commissioner General of the Federal Police Commission, Endeshaw Tassew, released a statement refuting his claims. Tassew said there was no measure taken against Mohammed either by the government or police.

“I am angry at the government," 27-year-old student Terefe Waltaji told Reuters. "Abiy is letting down the Oromo people and Qeerros who brought him to this stage. If Jawar is in trouble all of us Oromos are in trouble.”

Witnesses told Reuters that the protests were spread out throughout the country, with gunshots heard in the city of Adama. Video posted to social media shows Mohammed's supporters in the capital, Addis Ababa, chanting "down, down Abiy."

Oromo youth standing guard outside @Jawar_Mohammed house in Bole chant “down down Abiy”. #addisababa
pic.twitter.com/JLHBnN3217

— Robyn Lee Kriel (@robynkriel1) October 23, 2019

Ahmed became prime minister in April 2018 and recently won the Nobel prize for his peacemaking efforts between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea. Since coming to power, he has made a mark by electing women to his cabinet, releasing political prisoners and unblocking websites. However, civil unrest has broken out as some ethnic groups feel their concerns are not heard.

The prime minister has also been criticized for putting millions of citizens at risk with his bold reforms, particularly after the murder of his army chief of staff, General Seare Mekonnen, BBC reported.

"Abiy is a very driven, very ambitious man," one of Ahmed's critics said. "He symbolizes the kind of ambition, the kind of courage to storm the heavens that youth would represent, but he also represents the kind of tendency to gloss over things, the kind of tendency to try to telescope decades into months, years … to rush things."

Jawar Mohammed

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