Commander of the powerful south Gondar Fano faction was reportedly killed in action on Tuesday.
Commander WubAnte Abate was head of the powerful Guna division and later commander of all divisions in South Gondar under the Amhara Fano Gondar command.
The last few days, Gondar has been the center of the fight between Fano forces and Abiy Ahmed's regime loyalists.
His troops raided over the Amhara regional capital Bahir Dar and the historic city of Gondar multiple times leading the killing of several Abiy Ahmed troops in the cities.
The reports of his death were a shock to many who have been following the war between the rebels and forces loyal to Abiy Ahmed for the last ten months.
It wasn't clear how he got to the middle of a heavy fighting that led to his death instead of commanding his troops from afar.
Sources close to him say he was a brave soldier who always enjoyed fighting close to the enemy instead of a fortress like modern commanders do.
His death is definitely a huge blow to the rebels that have been holding on the fight for over ten months against the heavily armed Abiy Ahmed mercenary army without any military support or supply route from a foreign country.
WubAnte was a former Ethiopian army officer under the TPLF-led Ethiopia with a rank of a major. He left the army and started his own business in his hometown Gondar but was forced to return to the battlefield when the TPLF and Abiy Ahmed forces invaded the Amhara region in November 2020.
Abiy Ahmed's regime is celebrating the news as a major success, and it truly is a major success for the regime's army since they started the campaign over ten months ago. No Fano leader was captured or killed until this incident.
The following is a list of the top eight men who lead the rebels in the four provinces.
- WubAnte Abate (Gondar)
- Habte Wolde (Gondar)
- Zemene Kassie (Gojjam)
- Zinabu Wolde (Gojjam)
- Mire Wodajo (Wollo)
- Fantahun Muhabaw (Wollo)
- Meketaw Mamo (Shoa)
- Asegid Mekonnin (Shoa)