The OLA – which last year aligned itself with Tigrayan rebels against the Ethiopian federal government in the country’s protracted conflict – has denied all allegations. OLA spokesman Odaa Tarbii said Sunday that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s “regime” “again blames OLA for atrocities committed by its own retreating fighters”. The rebel group has been branded a terrorist organization by the Ethiopian government and is often accused of attacking civilians and targeting ethnic Amharas. This incident is one of the worst atrocities to hit the country since fighting broke out in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region in 2020, when the Abiy government and its allies in the neighboring Amhara region tried to quell a Tigray People’s Liberation Front uprising. (TPLF). TPLF dominates Ethiopian government before Abiy’s rise to power The ensuing civil war has led both sides to commit atrocities, according to human rights groups, and threatens to divide the ethnically different country. There is no indication that TPLF was involved in Saturday’s attack.
A local police officer involved in Saturday’s attempt to retaliate told CNN that an attack took place near Tole, a village in Gimbi, on Saturday, with most of the victims belonging to the Amhara ethnic group. The policeman spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak on the matter. The attack came days after fierce fighting between government security forces and OLA in the area, he said. Survivors and fugitives told police the attack began when OLA members tried to pass through the village but were denied passage by locals and some armed civilians. A Tole resident, speaking only on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said he saw OLA militiamen walking on a main road Saturday morning before dispersing to neighboring villages. Government forces, seen in Tole earlier in the week, had left the area days before the attack, he added. Police said correspondents were dispatched to the scene Sunday to retrieve and bury the bodies. Federal forces have now secured the area, he added, but “residents are still seeking immediate help due to security concerns in the area,” the EHRC said. The Oromia regional government also accused OLA of attacking civilians because it was “incapable of resisting security forces’ attacks” and has vowed to step up attacks against the group, according to a statement issued Sunday. Prime Minister Abiy said that “attacks on innocent civilians and the destruction of livelihoods by illegal and irregular forces are unacceptable,” he tweeted on Monday. EHRC chief Daniel Beckele urged authorities to “ensure the necessary measures to protect civilians” and “find a lasting solution to the problem”, the commission said in a statement on Sunday. Ethiopia is an ethnically and religiously diverse country with around 110 million people speaking many different languages. Its two largest ethnic groups, Oromo and Amhara, make up more than 60% of the population. The Tigrayans, the third largest, are about 7%. Last week, Abiy said the Ethiopian government had set up a commission to negotiate with forces from the Tigray region. The development marks an important step towards peace negotiations between the two sides.