The extrajudicial killing was not in a combat zone.
Borkena
Toronto – Ethiopian government forces continue to practice extrajudicial killings as a strategy to intimidate civilians not to support the rebel forces operating in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.
Credible sources who claimed to have contacted victims’ families report that 20 civilians were executed in two locations in the region – one in Gondar and one in Gojjam – on the same day.
BBC Amharic report published on Friday indicates that the incident took place on Tuesday. Some of the victims were executed on Tuesday – a day after Timkat celebration – in central Gondar zone – Alefa district.
Ethiopian government soldiers were reportedly travelling from Shawura to Delgi in South Gondar. They launched an attack on residents who were celebrating Kana Zegelila holiday – which is part of the three days Timkat celebration tradition in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. The incident took place around 10:30 A.M. local time. Government soldiers took some of the victims out of their homes (apparently the homes were roadside) and executed them.
The others were killed in Gojjam, Qarit, as they were working in farm land collecting straw for cattle. The incident in Quarit took place on Tuesday in the evening.
Video footage of families and communities grieving the losses and the funeral procession, which EMS aired, was published on Borkena (available here).
BBC Amharic said the effort to reach out to government authorities from the two locations where the extrajudicial killings took place was not a success.
One of the victims is reported to be female. And Many of the victims are underage children. A priest, whose name is not released and who serves in a church in the locality, was also executed.
It is established from eyewitnesses that the victims in both locations were not in a combat zone nor were they carrying guns when they were executed.
The source also indicated that it has not verified the story from other sources. However, the video footage cited above seems to confirm that the victims are unarmed civilians.
The Ethiopian government did not deny or confirm the executions of civilians. Usually, the Defense Force denies that it does not execute civilians despite there have been multiple cases where reputable human rights organizations in the country and abroad have confirmed prevalent executions of civilians in connection with the ongoing war in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. It has also been confirmed that the Ethiopian Defense Force has been targeting civilians with drone attacks.
Due to restrictions the government introduced in the region under the guise of “state of emergency” – which are said to be still in place, albeit in different forms, in many parts of the Amhara region – it is believed rights abuse in the region is underreported.
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