| Part of the Ethiopian Civil War | |
Victims of the massacre in photo
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| Native name | ጥቁር ቅዳሜ |
|---|---|
| Date | 23 November 1974; 49 years ago (1974-11-23) |
| Location | Kerchele Prison, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| Also known as | the Sixty Black Saturday |
| Type | Execution by firing squad |
| Target | 60 officials of the imperial government of Haile Selassie |
| Outcome | Executed |
The Massacre of the Sixty, or Black Saturday (Amharic: ጥቁሩ ቅዳሜ, tikuru kidami), was an execution that took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia commissioned by the Derg government against 60 imprisoned former government officials at Kerchele Prison on the morning of 23 November 1974.[1] [2] The prison was commonly called Alem Bekagn – "I've had enough of this world".
The Ethiopian Revolution started about ten weeks before the massacre. Before this point, the Derg was able to instill hope among the people that the revolution could remain bloodless.[3] Epitomised by the slogan "Ityopiya tikdem, yala mimin dem” – “Ethiopia first, without any bloodshed”.[3]
The massacre presaged the Red Terror and Ethiopian Civil War that would follow in years after.[3]
The 54 below were executed on the orders of Mengistu Haile Mariam. Their names were read the following morning on Ethiopian Radio.
The remaining six were killed in a shootout at the home of General Aman Andom
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Ethiopian Civil War (1974–1991)
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