Serious situation for arrested Swedish journalists
Two Swedish journalists have been seized and detained in Ethiopia. The guerrilla movement ONLF, who the journalists were reporting on, says that the men were taken by the Ethiopian army. Swedish Radio news is reporting that the men have contacted their families and told them that they had gun shot wounds.
A spokesperson for the Swedish Foreign Ministry says the two men will go in front of a judge Tuesday, but that the charge is unknown. Ethiopian authorities say the men entered the country illegally.
The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the information Monday afternoon.
"We have confirmation of the arrest, but we have no clear picture of their health situation," Sweden's Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt told Swedish Radio News. "We are trying to get more information and are prepared to assist."
Freelance journalist Johan Persson and photographer Martin Schibbye were in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia bordering Somalia. They were supposed to be embedded with the guerrilla movement ONLF, Ogaden’s liberation movement.
An Ethiopian government spokesperson confirmed to the news agency Reuters that the two Swedes were detained during a clash between the army and the ONLF and are now in custody.
