He returned to Ethiopia shortly before the beginning of the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, but upon the Italian forces entering Addis Ababa he acquiesced to their rule, christening 5 May 1936 as the beginning of the "Era of Mercy" for Ethiopia. Despite his loyalty to the Italian cause, in the backlash that followed the attempt on Graziani's life he was arrested and deported to Italy. He was not allowed to return to Ethiopia until 1938, after which he served usefully enough to be made "Afa Qesar" ("Mouthpiece of the Caesar") 9 May 1939. However, upon Haile Selassie's return to Ethiopia, Afaworq was arrested by the restored Ethiopian government, tried for treason, and sentenced to death—a sentence subsequently commuted to life imprisonment. He was exiled to Jimma where Afaworq, by then blind, died.