28 JULY, 2022. When Perpetua Apo SSL, Maureen Long’ep SSL and Naomi Nkrumah SSL were forced to leave Dawhan on November 16, 2020, due to an escalation of violence in the civil war in the region, they left the convent keys to Mekelle, the 14-year-old son of their neighbour, Abeba Hagos Weldu, who had gone to visit her mother in another village. Mekelle gave the keys to Abeba who has, since then, taken charge of the convent and protected it. The sisters were able to return the following April when things had calmed down, but by June, the conflict had started again. Perpetua returned to Addis Ababa in August 2021, and has been there since. When Naomi’s father passed away in Ghana in December, she and Maureen were evacuated on a United Nations plane in January 2022, and brought to Ghana. None of the sisters have been able to return to Dawhan, but in this news article, Naomi tells us about the heroism of Abeba, Mekelle, Honok and Abba Weldemariam Tesfay.

To read all about the heroism of Abeba Hagos Weldu, her twin sons Mekelle and Honok, and Abba Weldemariam Tesfay, click on Issue 121 of our monthly newsletter Musings.