The Cassation Bench of Addis Ababa’s City Administration Court issued a ruling today regarding the admissibility of the police’s appeal against the city’s appellate court decision on the bail rights of journalist Tesfalem Waldyes, the founder and editor-in-chief of the “Ethiopia Insider” online media outlet.
The Cassation Bench ruled that the police’s application was inadmissible and upheld the lower court’s decision. It also ordered the police to honor the lower court’s ruling and release Tesfalem from custody. This marks the third court ruling this week in favor of the journalist’s release and recognition of his right to bail.
Tesfalem Waldyes was arrested by plainclothes security forces on Sunday, June 8, 2025, at the Ghion Hotel in Addis Ababa. Initially, he was brought before the city’s first instance court, the Kirkos Divisional Bench, which ruled in his favor, granting him bail with a bond of 15,000 birr on June 10, 2025.
The police appealed the initial ruling to the Court of Appeal, but the court upheld the first instance court’s decision, reaffirming journalist Tesfalem Waldyes’ right to bail on June 11, 2025.
The police then took the case to the Addis Ababa City Cassation Bench for a third time, holding a hearing today, June 12, 2025. In their application, the police argued that the appellate court’s decision to uphold the first instance court’s ruling contained legal errors.
However, for the third time, the court rejected the police’s application as inadmissible without reviewing the case on its merits. The bench, the highest judicial authority in the city administration, also ordered the police to execute the ruling given by the appellate court and mandated the immediate release of journalist Tesfalem from detention.
As of the time of this statement, the police have not implemented the decisions of all three courts. Haq Media and Communication strongly urges the police to comply with the court orders and release journalist Tesfalem Waldyes as granted by the bail.
