According to eyewitness reports, unidentified attackers killed more than 100 people in Ethiopia. According to information on Sunday, armed men shot dead in Oromia, the largest state in the East African country, mainly members of the Amharer ethnic group. The attack happened near the town of Gimbi on Saturday and targeted several surrounding villages.
The regional government in Oromia confirmed the attack and blamed the rebel group Oromo Liberation Army (OLA). Further details were not initially known. An OLA spokesman denied responsibility for the attack on Twitter.
An eyewitness told the German Press Agency that he had heard of around 300 dead bodies that had been recovered. Many people hid in the surrounding forests for fear of subsequent attacks, another eyewitness reported to the German Press Agency. In the attack, mainly women, children and the elderly were shot.
Ethiopia classified the OLA as a terrorist group after aligning itself with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). OlA and TPLF are accused of wanting to destabilize Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. The OLA, a splinter group of the political party Oromo Liberation Front, calls for more autonomy and self-determination for the Oromo people.
