Ethiopian government forces executed at least 45 residents of a town in the regional state of Amhara (north) on January 29, where they clashed with local militias, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) denounced on Tuesday.
A statutorily independent public institution, the EHRC considers in a press release that this assessment is below reality because, failing to have been able to
“collect exhaustive information due to the security situation”
in particular,
“its investigative work does not could be completely carried out
.
The EHRC explains that it is investigating
“civilian victims following fighting between government security forces and the Fano”
, Amhara militias, on January 29, 2024 in Merawi, a locality about 30 km south of the regional capital Bahir Dar.
“Subject to a thorough investigation, the checks carried out by the EHRC made it possible to confirm the identities of at least 45 civilians executed by government security forces, because they were accused of supporting the Fano
,” indicates the institution.
Much political violence
The EHRC further states that on January 19,
"at least 15 people, including women (...) were killed"
in the locality of Yeidwuha (around 160 km south of Bahir Dar),
"during a operation of systematic searches of houses following fighting
.
The Ethiopian Parliament extended at the beginning of February for four months the state of emergency established in August 2023 in Amhara to try - without success for the moment - to reduce the Fano insurgency, triggered by an attempt by the federal government to disarm Amhara forces.
About 90% of Amhara state's approximately 23 million residents belong to the Amhara community.
Since Abiy Ahmed became Prime Minister in 2018, many areas of Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous country with 120 million inhabitants, have been plagued by political and/or community violence, accompanied by numerous abuses perpetrated by the various camps.