Ethiopia convicts Swedish journalists
Addis Ababa, 21 Dec – (ANA) - An Ethiopian court has convicted two Swedish journalists of supporting terrorism.
Ethiopian troops captured Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye six months ago during a clash with rebels in the East African state's Somali region.
The court ruled it was "very unlikely" that they had only entered Ethiopia illegally to gather news.
Ethiopia regards the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) rebel group as a terrorist organisation.
Judge Shemsu Sirgaga said the group arranged the Swedes' journey from London to Ethiopia, with stop-overs in Kenya and Somalia, the AP news agency reports.
"Guilty as charged, period, unanimous vote," the judge is quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.
"They have shown that they are esteemed journalists, but we cannot conclude that someone with a good reputation doesn't engage in criminal acts." (ANA)
FA/ANA/21 December 2011-------