In spring 2022, as a war raged between the federal government of Ethiopia and its northernmost region, Tigray, I traveled to Amhara, an area that had been held by Tigrayan forces, to report on the atrocities of the war. My local reporting partner was detained after I left the country and, once released, fled to Rome, where he now lives in a refugee camp.

M. has at last won asylum, but he has no regular income, must learn a new language, will not be able to return to Ethiopia to see his family for five years, and remains separated from his wife until Ethiopia resumes issuing visas and she can join him in Italy.

The disparity between my experience and M.'s is stark and illustrative of the risks local "fixers" take to help report international news.

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