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Report on ongoing identity-based attacks against the Amhara community in Nono Woreda (West Shewa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia)


Report on ongoing identity-based attacks against the Amhara community in Nono Woreda (West Shewa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia)


Updated July 22nd, 2024


Overview


The Amhara Association of America (AAA) has conducted an investigation into reported identity-based attacks against Amhara residents in various kebeles of Nono Woreda (West Shewa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia). The investigation revealed that starting from June 14th, 2024 and in the days that followed at least 19 Amhara civilians were killed and several others were injured and arrested by Oromia Region Special Forces (OSF) and allied Qeerro (ultranationalist Oromo youth).


Background and Context


For decades, Amharas in various kebeles of Nono Woreda have been subjected to frequent attacks by the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) and Qeerro (ultra-nationalist Oromo youth) with backing from federal and regional government officials and security forces.


In recent years, particularly since the ascension of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Oromo Prosperity Party regime, reports indicate that Amhara residents have been confined to limited settlement areas with restricted access to farmland. The situation has been exacerbated by contentious land policies implemented this year by local woreda and kebele administrators. These officials have been confiscating lands from Amhara residents and reallocating them to Oromo investors and Qeerro members.


In particular, Amhara farmers in Nano Halo Kebele, Medalo village in Nono Woreda were completely evicted from their land following a government decision without legal grounds. According to sources from five kebeles, more than 20,000 Amhara farmers were reportedly evicted from their farmlands. This sudden displacement left the Amhara farmers without a means to sustain their livelihoods. In an effort to address their dire situation, some farmers sought to rent land through lease agreements with ethnic Oromo inhabitants of the area, mainly Oromo settlers who came from Hararge with close ties to the government.


Tensions arose when the Oromo landowners, reportedly in collaboration with woreda and kebele administrators, denied Amhara farmers access to the leased land. Despite securing the required payment for the lease agreements, the Oromo landowners prevented the Amhara farmers from cultivating the land, leaving them unable to cultivate crops necessary for their livelihood.


Amidst this tension, a bomb exploded on the night of June 14th, 2024 during a wedding ceremony in Nano Qondala, a kebele neighboring Nano Halo Kebele, Medalo village. The wedding was mostly attended by ethnic Oromo residents, and the explosion resulted in numerous fatalities. Given that the incident occurred at night, the motive behind the attack and the perpetrators responsible for the bombing remain unclear. Local sources suggest that the attack was executed by unknown gunmen, and they speculate that the motive was most likely due to an individual or personal conflict.


Despite the difficulty of identifying the perpetrators, local government officials concluded that the bomb attack was carried out by Amhara residents without any investigation and disseminated to various media outlets, leading to instigations of further attacks against the Amhara community. Using the incident as a pretext, Oromia Region security officials also attempted to justify ongoing and intensified actions against the Amhara community throughout the country, particularly in connection with ongoing military operations in Amhara Region, Oromia Region, Addis Ababa city and neighboring areas.


According to sources, shortly after the June 14th incident, OSF and Qeerro began engaging in retaliatory actions. These actions included identity-based killings, physical beatings, mass arrests, and burning of properties belonging to ethnic Amhara residents. AAA’s investigation revealed that on June 14th and the following days, at least 19 Amhara civilians were killed, with several others injured and arrested. The attacks were carried out in villages predominantly inhabited by ethnic Amhara residents.


Summary of Incidents


  • The first incident involved the killing of two civilians in Werabesa village of Gulele Kebele. Two Amhara civilians, identified as Assefa Haile-Giyorgis and Kassahun Demise were taken from their homes and subsequently burned alive.

  • Another notable instance is the killing of 68-year-old Aweke Akalu. Ato Aweke was tragically shot and killed on June 16th while he was guarding his farm animals in Werabesa village. Soldiers struck him with three bullets and left him for dead. The late Aweke’s family members were initially unable to collect his body, which was eventually laid to rest at the cemetery of St. Balewold Church three days later.

  • The OSF soldiers summoned six militiamen and apprehended three other civilians from the streets. They confiscated their legally registered firearms and detained them for several days. The detained individuals were then dragged from the detention center, executed en masse, and their bodies were left out on the street.

  • OSF soldiers shot and killed a farmer named Yeshanew Hailu. After the OSF shot and killed him, they left his body unburied for at least two days and it was reportedly eaten by an eagle.

  • Two civilians were brutally killed with bladed weapons. The first victim, identified as Admassu Bekele, was attacked when the OSF encountered him while traveling in a bajaj. According to sources, the soldiers forcibly dismounted him from the vehicle and subsequently took his life with a bladed weapon.

  • The OSF soldiers killed another victim, an unnamed resident of Nano Qondala Kebele, with a bladed weapon, accusing him of possessing a firearm.

  • A victim, identified as Wubishet Tigabu, was killed while defending his house from being burned by Qeerro. After his death, the OSF soldiers detained his four children and subjected them to various forms of abuse for an extended period.

  • An unidentified victim was critically wounded by gunshot and received medical treatment at Black Lion Hospital until recently.



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