Ethiopian Orthodox Church says 60 faithful killed in two attacks in Arsi


Patriarch Abune Mathias raises a gold cross while speaking at a desk, in a frame from EOTC TV

Patriarch Abune Mathias speaks at a church gathering [file photo]. Image: EOTC TV via X

The Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church says 60 Orthodox Christians were killed in two attacks in Arsi this month, and has asked Government bodies to condemn the killings.

In a statement issued on Monday by its plenary assembly, the Synod said 14 believers were killed on October 20 at Gora Silingo in Angada kebele of Merti woreda, and 46 more on October 24 in the Tereta, Chole and Birbo areas of Shirka woreda. Twenty homes were burned to the ground, and more than 20 people were seriously wounded and remain in hospital, the Synod said, citing reports from its Arsi diocese.

The Synod described the killings as shameful and completely unacceptable, and said they violated religious freedom and the constitutional right to life, according to Wazema Radio's summary of the statement. It asked Government bodies to stop the killing of innocent people, to bring those responsible to justice and to give legal protection so that the attacks are not repeated. It also decided to name a committee to study a lasting solution, Wazema reported.

The church held a memorial prayer service at the Patriarchate on Monday and directed all of its monasteries and churches around the world to hold memorial prayers after the liturgy on Tuesday, the Ethiopian news site Borkena reported.

The Synod's figure of 46 for Shirka matches what three residents of the kebele told BBC Amharic: 46 people were killed in the attack that began at dawn on Saturday, October 24, and that the dead were buried "in one grave" at the local church. About 20 wounded people were taken to hospital, and one of them died on Monday, a resident said. A church servant in Shirka told the BBC it was "the largest number so far" in the series of attacks.

BBC Amharic described it as the second attack in Shirka within a week. Residents said that between October 12 and 17, at least six people were killed and at least five abducted in attacks in Shirka and Honkolo Wabe woredas. The area, part of the former Arsi zone, now falls under the Southeast zone in Oromia's new administrative structure.

BBC Amharic's own timeline separately reports more than 15 people killed at Gora Silingo on the night of October 13, citing a source in the woreda; the Synod gives October 20 for its 14.

The Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO) said in a recent report that 458 people were killed and 38 went missing in Arsi between September 2021 and this May, BBC Amharic reported.

Haylu Adugna, head of communications for the Oromia regional Gov't, confirmed the Shirka attack, BBC Amharic reported, without giving a toll and blamed the group the Gov't calls "OLF Shene," which is the Oromo Liberation Army. The OLA had not responded publicly, BBC Amharic said.

The Associated Press and Al Jazeera carried the Synod's toll on Tuesday. Al Jazeera reported that the Oromia regional Gov't has pledged to pursue those responsible and that no group had claimed the attacks. A local official told the BBC the attackers belonged to the Alliance for Survival, a newly formed rebel coalition that includes the OLA, Baptist Press reported. The OLA has previously denied attacking civilians, Al Jazeera said.

One Orthodox believer on X, @yaredmk, compared the response to Jordan's. "Jordan just struck targets in Syria in retaliation after gunmen attacked a Greek Orthodox church funeral in Karak," he wrote on Tuesday, before turning to the more than 60 Orthodox Christians killed in Arsi. @ETHDefenders called it "the horrific identity- and religion-based massacre of 60 worshippers in Arsi."

The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party (EPRP) said in a statement that the silence in the face of repeated killing of civilians in Arsi raises serious questions, DW Amharic reported.

The Government Communication Service had not responded to questions Mereja sent on October 25 about the Shirka attack, or to a request sent on October 27 for comment on the Synod's figures. The Synod said a high-level meeting had been scheduled with senior Government officials to agree on long-term security measures to prevent further attacks on Christian communities, Borkena reported.

Sources

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