Protesters killed and 40,000 jailed as Blair's friend quells 'insurrection' By David Blair in Addis Ababa (Filed: 16/12/2005) A leader handpicked by Tony Blair to champion Africa has smashed his opponents with the biggest crackdown in the continent's recent history, jailing 40,000 people including boys of 15. Meles Zenawi, the Ethiopian prime minister and a member of Britain's Commission for Africa, has launched a systematic onslaught against every possible adversary. Meles Zenawi: Onslaught The entire leadership of Ethiopia's main opposition party has been locked up. Mr Meles has closed five newspapers and jailed their editors, while police have killed about...