Mesfin Hagos (born 1947) is an Eritrean who was one of the founding members of the

Eritrean People's Liberation Front The Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), colloquially known as Shabia, was an armed Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist organization that fought for the Eritrean War of Independence, independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia. It emerged in 1 ...

(EPLF). In government, he was the Eritrean Minister of Defense during the 1990s. After repression by president

Isaias Afwerki Isaias Afwerki (, ; born 2 February 1946) is an Eritrean politician and leader who has been the List of heads of state of Eritrea, president of Eritrea since 1993 and the chairman of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) since 1994 ...

against Mesfin's colleagues, Mesfin fled Eritrea in 2001 and sought

political asylum The right of asylum, sometimes called right of political asylum (''asylum'' ), is a juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereignty, sovereign authority, such as a second country or ...

in Germany in 2013, where he lived .

Childhood and education

Mesfin was born in the small village of Azien, north of

Asmara Asmara ( ), or Asmera (), is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region (Eritrea), Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the List of capital cities by altitude, sixth highest capital in the wo ...

, on 21 November 19, 1947. He went to secondary school in Debre Berhan and attended the

Addis Ababa University Addis Ababa University (; AAU) is a national university located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is the oldest university in Ethiopia. AAU has thirteen campuses. Twelve of these are situated in Addis Ababa, and one is located in Bishoftu, about away. ...

until 1966.

Rebel fighter

Mesfin was a founding member of the

(EPLF) in 1973. Before founding that organization, he had joined the

Eritrean Liberation Front The Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF; ; ; ), colloquially known as Jebha, was the main Eritrean War of Independence, independence movement in Eritrea Province, Eritrea which sought Eritrea's independence from Ethiopia during the 1960s and the ear ...

(ELF) in 1967 as an ordinary member. He eventually became Deputy Commander of ELF Zone 5. Mesfin Hagos left the ELF in 1970 with

, Major General Asmerom Gerezgiher, Solomon Weldemariam, and Tewelde Eyob. Hagos was a part of the founding leadership of the EPLF. Mesfin Hagos briefly served as the Chief of Staff in the EPLF. He was one of the commanders of the Battle of Af'abet that destroyed the backbone of the Ethiopian army.

Government and exile

Popular with the fighters, Mesfin served as the defence minister of Eritrea in the 1990s. He was fired in 2001 for joining the G-15 (Eritrea), but was out of Eritrea for medical treatment and managed to escape detention In 2013, Mesfin sought

asylum Asylum may refer to: Types of asylum * Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome * Benevolent asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute * Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea * ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

after his colleagues opposing the President were hunted down. , Mesfin lived in Germany.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hagos, Mesfins 1947 births Eritrean soldiers Living people Government ministers of Eritrea Eritrean People's Liberation Front members