The GERD is located in the Benishangul Gumuz region, in an area bordering Amhara known as Guba.
Fano allegedly captured the workers near Debre Markos in Amhara’s Gojjam zone in late February 2024.
In a press statement (archived here) issued on Facebook a day before the Addis Standard article, local officials from Gardula said that footage was circulating showing “labourers being escorted to unknown locations by Fano militia fighters”.
On March 11, 2024, an independent Ethiopian journalist shared copies of official-looking documents on Facebook (archived here), which indicated that a construction company had asked to hire several hundred labourers from the Gardula zone. Their demand had been approved by the labour and social affairs bureau.
Captives freed
The state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate (FBC) reported on March 23, 2024, that the army had freed “271 people who were kidnapped by Fano” (archived here).
The story included a picture of the freed labourers.
AFP Fact Check identified individuals wearing the same clothes in the FBC image published following after their release and in the footage of their capture.
On March 26, 2024, the Gardula Zone Administrator also confirmed in a statement that the labourers had returned to their homes (archived here).
The post also included images of the freed men.
AFP Fact Check has contacted the zone’s administration for further comment and will update the story accordingly.
We have previously debunked similar posts about Fano capturing government soldiers here and here.