Thousands celebrate Ethiopia's thanksgiving festival

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Thousands gathered in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, on Saturday for the East African country’s thanksgiving festival, which is celebrated annually by the largest ethnic group, the Oromos, who were donning mostly white traditional attire.

The Irreecha festival is held to thank God, whom the Oromos call Waaqa. Some still practice the traditional Waaqqeffannaa, which is the worship of Waaqa.

“Irreecha is an important tradition that the Oromos treasure,” said Abbaa Gadaa Asmacha Foro, who was attending the festival and had traveled from the West Shewa Zone in the country’s central Oromia region.

Representing approximately a third of Ethiopia’s nearly 130 million population, the Oromo people use this annual festival to preach peace and unity.

“Irreecha is a vibrant thanksgiving festival that unites all the main clans of the Oromo,” said Robiya Bimam, a 35-year-old hotelier and resident of Addis Ababa.

There was increased security in the city before the festival, after the one in 2016 turned violent. Attendees at the time used the festival to hold anti-federal government protests and clashed with security forces, leading to a stampede that left more than 50 people dead.

That deadly festival gave birth to new leadership, which saw current Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, born in the Oromia region, rise to power.

Ahmed said Saturday that this year’s Irreecha comes after the country inaugurated the Grand Renaissance Dam, which “doubles our joy.”

Legesse Addisalem, an elder from Sebeta, a small town located 22 kilometers (about 13 miles) from Addis Ababa, said that “Irreecha is a celebration of fertility, love, and peace. We pray for peace not only for Ethiopia but for all of Africa and the world.”

James Jordan, a tourist from the U.S., attended the Irreecha festival for the first time.

“As a tourist, I’m mesmerized by the lively culture and large crowds at the Irreecha festival,” he said.

“I found it to be a wonderful celebration,” said Tariku Gankasi, a prominent Ethiopian artist from Jinka, a southern region of Ethiopia.

The majority of Oromos believe that they were denied the right to practice and promote their traditions by authorities in the past, including Emperor Menelik II, Emperor Haile Selassie and the military-Marxist Derg government.

Following protracted struggles and immense sacrifices, the Irreecha festival was revived in the late 1990s, when the Derg was toppled.

Umer Ali, 60, was elegantly dressed in his traditional Oromo clothing as he reflected on the revival of the Irreecha celebrations.

“For 150 years, the Oromo were denied cultural expression, but reforms by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed six years ago now allow them to celebrate Irreecha in Finfine and express their culture,” he said.

Yosuf Robie, a resident of Addis Ababa, said that “we inherited this culture from our ancestors, and we must promote and pass it on to the next generation."

Now, with Abiy as the country’s first Oromo leader, many Oromos feel more empowered to promote their culture.

But despite being Oromo, Abiy faces growing criticism from some within the community, who argue he hasn't done enough for them.

“Despite the sacrifices made by generations for justice, freedom, and cultural recognition, most Oromo causes are still ignored and pushed aside under Abiy’s administration,” said Haqaafan Worku, a 36-year-old social science expert. “Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed tries to create a false image, pretending that the questions and demands of the Oromo have been addressed. This is far from the truth.”

People attend the annual thanksgiving celebrations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Saturday, Oct 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Amanuel Birhane)

People attend the annual thanksgiving celebrations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Saturday, Oct 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Amanuel Birhane)

People attend the annual thanksgiving celebrations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Saturday, Oct 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Amanuel Birhane)

People attend the annual thanksgiving celebrations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Saturday, Oct 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Amanuel Birhane)

FILE - People throw grass and flowers into a pool of water as they celebrate the annual Irreecha festival in the capital Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Oct. 1, 2022. (AP Photo/File)

ROME (AP) — Olympic swimming champion Gregorio Paltrinieri and fellow Summer athletes started the torch relay for the Milan Cortina Winter Games on Saturday — marking exactly two months before the Feb. 6 opening ceremony.

Paltrinieri carried the sleek torch around the track of the statue-lined Stadio dei Marmi at the Foro Italico to begin a trek covering 12,000 kilometers (nearly 7,500 miles) that will wind its way through all 110 Italian provinces before reaching Milan’s San Siro Stadium for the opening ceremony.

“It’s a pleasure to be part of the Olympic movement even if it’s Winter Olympics,” Paltrinieri said.

In all, there will be 10,001 torch bearers.

At the end of the opening day, police said they stopped two groups of pro-Palestinian activists from coming into contact with the relay route.

Giancarlo Peris, the final torch bearer from the 1960 Olympics in Rome, carried the Olympic flame in a lantern to get the proceedings going. The 84-year-old Peris was 18 when he lit the cauldron at the Stadio Olimpico — which is next to the Stadio dei Marmi — more than 65 years ago.

“I didn't think I would be here today,” Peris said with a chuckle.

Paltrinieri won gold in the 1,500 meters at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and has five Olympic medals in all. He and girlfriend Rossella Fiamingo, a fencer, carried Italy's flag at the closing ceremony for last year's Paris Games.

“I used to ski when I was a kid but then I stopped because it’s a little bit dangerous for me,” Paltrinieri said. “Skiing is my favorite (Winter Olympic sport). ... Alberto Tomba was one of my biggest idols.”

Paltrinieri handed off to retired fencer Elisa Di Francisca, who won two golds at the 2012 London Games.

Next was Gianmarco Tamberi, the 2020 Olympic high jump champion.

Also carrying the torch around Rome on Saturday were tennis player Matteo Berrettini, retired NBA player Andrea Bargnani and former motorcycle racer Max Biaggi.

Actor Ricky Tognazzi carried the torch while riding a white Vespa in a scene reminiscent of the 1953 film “Roman Holiday” featuring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck.

The torch relay, which includes 60 city celebrations, will be in Naples for Christmas and in Bari for New Year’s Eve. It will reach 2006 Olympics host Turin on Jan 11.

The torch will arrive in Verona on Jan. 18 and pass through Cortina d’Ampezzo on Jan. 26 — on the 70th anniversary of the opening ceremony of the 1956 Winter Olympics held at the resort in the Dolomites.

There will also be a cauldron lit in Cortina on the night of the opening ceremony.

Local organizing committee president Giovanni Malagò noted the torch relay will pass by all of the country's UNESCO World Heritage sites, of which Italy has more than any other country with 61.

“It's like a giant two-month advertisement,” Malagò said.

These Games will be held across a large swath of northern Italy and the ceremony will be observed in four different locations, including Livigno (where snowboarding and freestyle skiing will be contested) and Predazzo (ski jumping).

Skating sports will be in Milan; men’s Alpine skiing and ski mountaineering in Bormio; and women’s Alpine skiing, sliding sports and curling in Cortina.

The next stops on the torch relay are Viterbo on Sunday and Terni on Monday.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Former Italian track athlete Giancarlo Peris, 84, left, who was the final bearer of the Olympic torch for the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, holds a lantern with the Olympic flame ahead of the start of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch ceremony in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. The journey will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian former foil fencer and Olympic and world champion Elisa Di Francisca carries the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri lights the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian high jumper and Olympic gold medalist Gianmarco Tamberi, left, receives the flame of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch from Italian former foil fencer and Olympic and world champion Elisa Di Francisca in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian high jumper and Olympic gold medalist Gianmarco Tamberi carries the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri carries the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri, left, passes the flame of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch to Italian former foil fencer and Olympic and world champion Elisa Di Francisca in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri lights the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri carries the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Italian swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri carries the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics torch in Rome as it begins its journey through Italy, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, a journey that will conclude in Milan in February 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)