Witnesses have reported that Ethiopian soldiers killed over 70 civilians and engaged in looting in the town of Majete, located in the Amhara region. These alleged atrocities occurred following two weeks of intense fighting between federal troops and the Fano, an Amhara militia. The reported killings and looting took place after Ethiopian forces occupied Majete on September 3, The Guardian reported.
Survivors described the victims as unarmed farmers who fell victim to house-to-house searches conducted by the federal soldiers. One witness, Yesaynesh, recounted the ordeal, stating,
"They came to our village late afternoon. They asked me and my family where we hide our weapons and threatened us to hand over the weapons to them. We told them that we are innocent farmers and we don't have weapons. When they found no weapon after searching the house, they rounded up my two brothers alongside the younger men of our village and shot them all in the head."
The conflict between the government and the Fano militia erupted after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced plans to dismantle regional paramilitary forces and incorporate them into the national army. The Fano militia resisted this move, leading to clashes and violence in the region.
Ethiopia declared a nationwide state of emergency on August 4, and since then, reports have emerged of airstrikes and civilian casualties in the Amhara region. Amnesty International has called on Ethiopian authorities to grant independent investigators and the media unrestricted access to Amhara to investigate alleged human rights violations during the state of emergency.
The victims of these alleged atrocities were reportedly innocent farmers who had no association with the Fano militia. Witnesses also stated that federal soldiers looted livestock and killed civilians, accusing them of supporting the militia. Survivors shared harrowing accounts of federal troops terrorizing villagers, conducting house-to-house searches, and accusing residents of hiding fighters and weapons.
The deteriorating situation in Amhara has raised concerns, with at least 183 people reported killed in the region since July. Additionally, a drone strike in the town of Finote Selam last month resulted in the deaths of at least 26 people.
The UN Commissioner for Human Rights spokesperson, Marta Hurtado, has expressed concern about the escalating violence and house-to-house searches in Amhara. She called on all actors to cease killings, violations, and abuses in the region.
Both the European Union (EU) and the United States (US) have expressed concern about the ongoing conflict in Amhara and reports of human rights abuses. Notably, the federal army, the Fano militia, and Eritrean troops have faced accusations of committing crimes against humanity, including ethnic cleansing, torture, and sexual violence during the Tigray war.
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