At Least 140 Killed in Ethiopian Ethnic Clashes This Month

(Bloomberg) -- Intercommunal fighting in Ethiopia left at least 140 people dead this month and forced thousands more to flee their homes, according to the opposition National Movement of Amhara.

The killings in Ethiopia’s western region of Benishangul-Gumuz started on Sept. 6 and followed similar attacks by militiamen in the past, Dessalegn Chanie, a spokesman for the NaMA party, said by phone on Thursday. Some victims were forcefully taken to a school and shot, while others were attacked with spears, Dessalegn said, citing a survivor.

The Ethiopia Human Rights Commission said in a statement it was “deeply concerned” by the security situation in the region. The authorities should open investigations into the killings, it said.

Unrest has flared in Ethiopia since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed began opening up the country’s once tightly regulated political space after coming to power in April 2018. His unbanning of opposition and rebel groups has stoked political fragmentation and long-suppressed rivalries among ethnic communities

The “sporadic security incidents” are “perpetrated by groups aimed at overturning the reforms journey,” Abiy said Thursday on his Twitter account. “A special operation will be activated to hold accountable all perpetrators with the oversight of the attorney general.”

More than 25,000 people fled their homes as militiamen and some former disgruntled government officials launched attacks in Benishangul-Gumuz, according to the army.

“The army has killed, captured and injured some of the attackers and is in pursuit of those at large,” Mohammed Tessema, director of the indoctrination division in Ethiopia’s military, told reporters in a televised briefing.

The violence comes after deadly protests in June, following the killing of prominent singer Hachalu Hundessa. About 200 people died and the government has since arrested 9,000 people, according to the nation’s rights commission.

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