More than 40 people were killed when an unidentified armed group attacked Orthodox Christian churches and homes in Ethiopia’s central Oromia state on Saturday, residents and a conflict monitor told AFP.
At least 43 people died and 18 were wounded in villages in the Shirka district, about 270 kilometres (170 miles) south of the capital Addis Ababa, according to local residents and the ACLED conflict monitor.
“The attack is said to be religiously motivated and to have targeted Orthodox Christians,” ACLED said, noting that the assault sparked clashes with local militias and continued through Saturday afternoon and evening.
One resident, who asked to remain anonymous, told AFP by phone: “My sister and uncle were killed, and several of my relatives were taken hostage in Chole ward of Shirka district.” The resident put the death toll at 44, while another said 51 people had been killed.
A deacon from one of the attacked churches said 46 people died. “We are deeply shocked by these tragic killings and are appealing to the government to intervene and restore security,” he said, adding that some locals had taken refuge in nearby churches.
Verifying information remains difficult in Ethiopia because of tight restrictions on media access. The state-run Ethiopia Human Rights Commission said only that it was “following the situation.”
Oromia, Ethiopia’s largest region with around 40 million people, has long faced an insurgency and ethnic tensions among its Muslim, Protestant and Orthodox communities. ACLED has recorded rising attacks against Orthodox Christians in the area since February 2023, with further escalation over the past year.
It was unclear whether the Oromo Liberation Front, the main insurgent group in the state, was involved. While political and ethnic grievances have driven the insurgency, religion has increasingly been used to mobilise fighters.
Ethiopia continues to grapple with multiple internal conflicts, including renewed heavy fighting last month in the northern Tigray region.
