Ato Bereket Simon, Head of the Government Communications Affairs Office, in a press conference has announced that the Council of Ministers has declared a period of national mourning and flags throughout the nation will be flying at half-mast. Ato Bereket said the death of Prime Minister Meles was a huge shock for the entire nation. He said that the Prime Minister had passed away after an illness for which he had been receiving medical treatment abroad for the last two months. A seven person national committee had been set up to organize funeral proceedings. The details would be announced shortly. Responding to questions from journalists, Ato Bereket said that Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has taken over as acting Prime Minister of the country. He will be sworn in later as Prime Minister once the House of People’s Representatives has been called into session which will take place soon. Ato Bereket said that Prime Minister Meles had been the architect of the current Growth and Transformation Plan, and emphasized that this and other government policies would continue to be implemented as before.

Source:http://www.mfa.gov.et/news/more.php?newsid=1103