Ethiopian gov’t forces killed 27 civilians in the Amhara region
Ethiopian government forces this week reportedly killed 27 civilians, in two separate incidents, in a latest string of extrajudicial killings in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. The forces allegedly carried it out in a coffee shop and in the streets.
It took place on Monday and Wednesday in North Shoa and Gojjam areas.
BBC Amharic said it spoke to residents from the area from the areas where the killings took place.
The place where Ethiopian forces carried out the latest string of extrajudicial killings is close to Debre Sina town along the Addis Ababa-Dessie road. (Pic : Debre Sina/ file/ Wikimapia)
On June 26 , In North Shoa Tarma Ber district – which is close to Debre Sina town – at least 15 were killed and four others were injured, according to residents who happen to be eyewitnesses and a survivor. It happened around 5:30 P.M in Agam Ber locality of the district.
The victims were, according to the eyewitnesses, mostly peasants who came to the kebele to get fertilizer. They estimate the soldiers who carried out the extrajudicial killings to be between nine and twelve.
“They came and directly started shooting at the store,” the eyewitnesses said. In the Mamush Coffee shop in the kebele, they killed about eight people who were having coffee.
“We were close by [the coffee shop] to load fertilizer. Eight people were killed inside the tea [coffee] shop,” an eyewitness who said he managed to escape through the back door told BBC Amharic.
Another eyewitness is cited as saying “They suddenly came massacred us and left.”
The soldiers started the killing spree in a junction known as Agam Ber where they executed about five to six civilians, according to another witness. “I do not know what they have seen. It was in the evening and they usually do not come that time…” he is quoted as saying.
Among the victims from the killing in Shoa is a 14 years old boy who was reportedly killed in the street nearby his grandparents house. The family is grieving in Debre Sina.
The victims were laid to rest on the same day and the day after the incident in several locations.
The source said the government forces were looking for three Fano fighters who came to the area to visit grieving families.
The residents who spoke to BBC Amharic say the perpetrators of that attack were government soldiers because they were in their defense force uniforms.
Gojjam
There was a similar execution in Adet, Gojjam two days before the incident in Shoa. At least 11 civilians were killed. One of the victims is a female while the remaining are male.
Two of them were killed in the street while the remaining were taken out
It came after the Fano force conducted a military operation and left the city. They were fighting government forces for hours during which government forces reportedly suffered severe losses.
The extrajudicial killings of civilians came around 3 p.m. in the afternoon of June 24.
A BBC Amharic report published on Friday said the government forces allege that the civilians they killed “give information to Fano forces.”
The victims were laid to rest on the same day.
There has been a recurring extrajudicial killings of civilians in the Amhara region of Ethiopia since Abiy Ahmed started an official military operation in the region in August 2023.
This week, the defense force commanders had been having a public engagement in different cities in the region on the security situation in the region and the fighting against Fano forces. The last meeting was held in Bahir Dar branded as “peace conference.” The Defense Chief of Staff said he is ready to negotiate with Fano forces anywhere and anytime.
The government has lost, evidently, credibility in the region and the prospect of peace notation appears to be at least questionable. Meanwhile, more and more youth are reportedly joining Fano forces as the massacre of civilians in the region is increasing.
Beneath the rich history of Ethiopia lies a disturbing trend of violence that has disrupted the tranquility of its ancient monasteries and the well-being of its inhabitants. On February 22, 2024, a brutal assault resulted in the deaths of four monks within the sacred confines of a monastery that has stood for more than a thousand years.
This tragic incident was not an isolated event; it followed a massacre on January 29th where over 100 civilians in Amhara were publicly executed by the regime’s forces, reminiscent of the darkest days of the communist red terror. Furthermore, six months prior, the historic Debre-Elias monastery in the Amhara region, a symbol of faith and heritage, was destroyed by the regime’s bombings, leading to the loss of nearly 600 lives.
These events are not insignificant moments in history; they serve as urgent calls for attention in a country where the echoes of the past intersect with the brutality of the present. The need to address and rectify these atrocities is paramount to ensure the preservation of Ethiopia’s cultural heritage and the protection of its people.
The effort to eliminate Orthodox Christians and Amharas from the nation involves decapitations carried out by Islamist factions and executions by the government. This initiative gained traction following the rise of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), an extreme-Marxist separatist organization, and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), an Islam-leaning separatist group, assuming power in Ethiopia with backing from Western nations. The TPLF has stoked discord and violence in the pursuit of Tigray supremacy through its Marxist principles, while the OLF advocates for terrorism and highlights Oromo victimization through radical Islamism. These factions have cooperated to fragment Ethiopia’s diverse populace along ethnic lines, setting the stage for the potential disintegration of the country.
Mengistu Haile Mariam’s communist rule experienced a decrease in backing as the Soviet Union neared its downfall, leading to the unexpected rise of the TPLF from 1974 to 1991. Despite pledging a shift towards democracy initially, both the TPLF, supported by the United States, and the Islamist OLF resorted to manipulative tactics akin to Mengistu’s regime, fueling internal divisions and exploiting anti-feudal sentiments in a post-feudal Ethiopia. Consequently, Ethiopia once again found itself influenced by Marxism.
Alongside their political strategies, the TPLF created the Endowment Fund for the Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT) as a front for their personal business ventures, using reparations. TPLF-run detention centers subjected individuals to brutal treatment, such as being detained with wild animals and experiencing violence, including sexual assault, particularly targeting Christian figures like nuns and priests. Moreover, the TPLF misled global donors, including prominent U.S. musicians, by weaponizing aid meant for famine relief, as exposed in a 1985 BBC report.
The separatist factions such as the TPLF promoted an extreme form of Marxism that directly opposed the aspiration for unity among the majority of Ethiopians, which accounts for approximately 95% of the population. This yearning for unity is deeply rooted in the longstanding Abrahamic principles of Orthodox Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. In stark contrast to these cherished traditions, the TPLF actively propagated division. They went as far as labeling Orthodox Christianity, the national language of Ethiopia, and the country’s rich history as the sole property of the ‘Amhara oppressors,’ thereby undermining the entire essence of Ethiopia’s identity.
The radicals insisted that their ethnic groups sever ties with the Amharic tongue, branding it a ‘language of the oppressor.’ This stoked further division, considering the reality that various ethnic groups speak various regional languages, just as many non-Tigray ethnic people in the north, bordering Tigray, speak the Tigray language. Moreover, it was not the ‘Amhara oppressors’ but the 19th century Tigray Emperor Yohannes who had made Amharic a national language.
The ultra-Marxism advocated by separatist groups like the TPLF contradicted the desire for Ethiopian unity embraced by about 95% of the country’s population. This desire follows from the ancient Abrahamic values of Orthodox Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Against these traditions, TPLF advanced division. Orthodox Christianity, Ethiopia’s national language, and Ethiopia’s history—the entire identity of Ethiopia, in fact—were presented as belonging to the ‘Amhara oppressors.’
The radicals insisted that their ethnic groups sever ties with the Amharic tongue, branding it a ‘language of the oppressor.’ This stoked further division, considering the reality that various ethnic groups speak various regional languages, just as many non-Tigray ethnic people in the north, bordering Tigray, speak the Tigray language. Moreover, it was not the ‘Amhara oppressors’ but the 19th century Tigray Emperor Yohannes who had made Amharic a national language.
The Democracy-Terrorism Paradox
Under the guise of ‘ethnic-federalism democracy,’ the TPLF implemented their manifesto by introducing a new constitution that created ethnic borders in line with the initial OLF/TPLF separationist mapping. They implemented ethnic ID cards, identity police, and divisive curricula, aiming to segregate Ethiopia’s unified multi-ethnic Habesha society into divided single-tribe blocs.
The TPLF forged alliances with like-minded Marxist radicals from the Amhara and Oromo communities, corrupting radicals and the unemployed by offering them the power to form Amhara and Oromo ethnic parties (ADP and ODP). Thus they formed a TPLF-controlled coalition: the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). The EPRDF created ethnic-based armed police and courts, imposed ethnic languages to replace the national language of the people, and used constitutional threats to jeopardize the majority’s citizenship rights.
To separate the Tigray region, the TPLF strategically gave the land that connects Tigray to international borders to a “Tigray ethnic bloc.” They also apportioned one-third of Ethiopia’s land to the ‘Oromo ethnic bloc’ in a move designed to appease OLF separatists. To support their claim that the land belonged to their ethnic group, they murdered and displaced hundreds of thousands. Their school curriculum also fueled extreme hatred towards the rest of society. Despite the newly issued ethnic ID cards that replaced citizenship with tribal identity, the fact remains that over 90% of Ethiopians are ethnically unidentifiable, having lived and mixed in diverse groups for centuries. Yet the TPLF and the ODP portrayed the Tigray and Oromo tribes as ‘oppressed’ in order to justify the atrocities they committed, instead blaming the Amhara and Orthodox Christian victims.
This sparked a cycle of violence and misinformation, with the TPLF using the ‘ethnic-federalism constitution’ to legitimize their actions as ‘liberation.’ While Western backers viewed radicalized Islam and Marxist extremism as threats to democracy elsewhere, they saw them, paradoxically, as potential agents of democracy within Ethiopia.
The U.S. played a significant role in the situation in Ethiopia. Not only has it provided funding to the TPLF, but it has also helped to fuel the conflict by openly supporting the TPLF terrorist manifesto as a “constitution,” while the U.S. liberal media continues to spread misinformation. This has contributed to the suffering of the Ethiopian people and raises questions about the true intentions behind the U.S.’s involvement in the region.
Although the TPLF and OLF continue to force Ethiopians into tribal blocs by making them to take on only their father’s identity. Around 75% of Ethiopians are of mixed ethnic background, with intermarriage being extremely common for centuries (including the families of the TPLF and ODP leaders like Meles Zenawi and Abiy Ahmed who radicalize their ethnic groups).
There are new ‘regional constitutions’ like Oromia’s, which claim the land for one ethnic group, but the reality is different. For, despite enforcement of the Oromo language by radicals, about 90% of the population in most areas—including Oromia—is multi-ethnic, and the land and properties belong to Ethiopians of all backgrounds.
TheRise of Oromo Terrorism
The U.S. continues to play a key role in Ethiopia’s government, including the appointment of Oromo Abiy Ahmed, who was recruited by the TPLF at the age of 14, eventually becoming Oromia deputy administrator and spy chief of the EPRDF. Abiy was credited with the creation of asurveillance network called ‘1 to 5’ that uses corrupt priests and citizens to spy on each other, Soviet style—with the help of theNSA.
Abiy’s ‘Oromia’ ethnic bloc implemented a criminal manifesto that it calls a “constitution.” In essence, it allows the government to confiscate the property of some 90% of the population—non-Oromo ethnic Ethiopians who have lived in that part of Ethiopia for generations—declaring all property in the state of Oromia to be the property of the Oromo-ethnic people. Abiy’s Oromo ideologues also infiltrated schools in Oromia, imposing a school anthem that depicts an imaginary history in which Oromo elites spilled blood for a century to liberate the Oromo tribe from slavery in Ethiopia. This new anthem must be sung by the 90% non-Oromo children in the region who are required to speak the Oromo language to survive.
One of the first shocking events was the hanging of a non-Oromo boy at a welcoming event for an Ivy League-educated radical Islamist, Jawar Mohammed, who preaches about the need for Ethiopian Muslims to convert to political Islamism or Wahhabism to survive. After Jawar’s call on Facebook to his Oromo followers, some 84 civilians—mostly Amharas and Orthodox Christians—were beheaded and stoned to death.
Among those murdered was a popular Oromo Orthodox singer, Hachalu Hundessa. Abiy and his Oromo radicals are believed to have arranged the killing, after which they blamed Amhara critics and instigated their radicalized Oromo youth to retaliate against Amhara. This resulted in the slaughter of over 160 civilians, mostly Orthodox Christians in Shashemene.
Since Abiy took power, two to six million Ethiopians have been displaced each year due to Islamist terrorism, war, and forceful eviction, breaking records established during some of the most devastating wars, such as those in Syria. If this regime is allowed to continue, the world will see unprecedented displacements as it tries to revoke the Ethiopian citizenship of 120 million people, a catastrophe funded by American taxpayers in the name of aid and liberation.
U.S. Interests and Corruption
In response to enduring injustices, the Amhara people found their voice in armed resistance. The Fano is comprised of faithful farmers and youths who gather for mutual protection. Initially a protest movement, the Fano has become a national self-defense and patriotic force rooted in Ethiopia’s history and the defense of its people, particularly those in the Amhara region. Despite this, U.S. liberal media and radical Marxists misrepresent the Fano as an Amhara ethno-nationalist militia.
The Amhara region, like all of the regions in Ethiopia, is a diverse region of multi-ethnic people and has been so for centuries. Likewise, as noted, some 90% of the people living in the Oromia region are ethnically non-Oromo, despite the new ethnic names and military imposed on them by the TPLF/OLF.
In the six months since the regime launched its war on the Amhara region, the Fano has grown into a formidable force that now controls most of the Amhara region. Their grassroots efforts are increasingly centralized, aiming to reclaim Ethiopia for all Ethiopians and transcending the divisions sown by the TPLF and OLF. Consequently, the political and security structures of Abiy’s regional government have collapsed, forcing Abiy’s Amhara Prosperity Party to go into exile in Addis Ababa.
The Fano movement is comprised of patriotic Ethiopians of all ethnicities. However, TPLF/OLF’s divisive tactics challenge national identity, to which the Amhara and most Ethiopians (including Tigray and Oromo) remain attached. The Fano, with their substantial political and military presence, urge all Ethiopians to reclaim their country and aim to restore the national balance of power and citizens’ rights. As Ethiopians of all stripes in Addis Ababa have told the regime, Fano is coming to Addis Ababa, because Ethiopians everywhere are waking up to their responsibilities as citizens.
American diplomat Mike Hammer has been accused of undermining the collective aspirations for unity and peace among Ethiopians, which are the motivations behind the Fano movement. In a recent private meeting with the Ethiopian American diaspora, dominated by TPLF and OLF representatives, an OLF member demanded the expulsion of all Amhara Ethiopians from Oromia state (where, again, some 90% of the population is non-Oromo). Hammer’s indifferent response revealed his careless attitude toward (if not outright support of) terrorism in Ethiopia. Americans must hold their government accountable, especially Democrats and members of the Biden administration.
U.S. complicity in this reign of terror is a stain on its commitment to human rights and justice. Furthermore, American citizens—especially African Americans and African immigrants—should ask questions about why the U.S. funded the TPLF with $40 billion in aid (much of which has been laundered back to fund the lavish lifestyle both of TPLF members and to fund various politicians). All of this is taking place while the U.S. is promoting a terrorist constitution in Ethiopia that is laying the ground for the murder and displacement of millions. Why is a high-ranking TPLF officer—Tedros Adhanom, accused of sterilizing Amhara women—leading the World Health Organization, despite outcry from Ethiopians? How did five million Ethiopian children receive digital IDs to feed AI, as revealed in the Epstein papers? When and why did the U.S. become a safe haven for terrorists and radical Islamists, like the TPLF and OLF agents who loot their own country, launder their criminally-obtained money, and murder their own people?
Ethiopia’s Resolve: Rejecting Terrorism
The solution to Ethiopia’s turmoil does not rest in perpetuating the failed experiment of terrorists and their divisive ‘ethnic federalism.’ Ethiopians must recognize their own citizenship rights and agency in uniting their people and safeguarding their lives. Thanks to the efforts of groups like the Fano, progress towards this goal is already underway.
The Fanos have already ignited a revival of Ethiopia’s national spirit, signaling a new era of defiance and possibility for all Ethiopians, an opportunity no Ethiopian anywhere can afford to miss. The question looms large: how quickly will the terrorist government crumble under the weight of popular resistance?
The United States’ aim of ensuring negotiations as a means to continue this terrorist system—to appease extremists who use violence to clamor for more power—is destined to destroy Ethiopia itself. This is a fate that must be averted. Ethiopian citizens must unite to fight the evils of the TPLF and OLF extremists and remove all their infrastructure: ethnic ID cards, ethnic police, ethnic regions, and harmful curricula.
The immense opportunity before Ethiopia today lies in removing constitutionally-sanctioned state terrorism and establishing law and order, which would also facilitate citizens’ potential to create jobs and improve their country. The fate of Ethiopia hangs in the balance, but so too does the fate of the world, as this ideology spreads.
As Ethiopia stands at the crossroads of its destiny, the consequences of its struggle resonate far beyond its borders. The ideologies that have fueled its chaos are not limited to geography; they have an impact on global discourse and policy, especially today. The world watches, perhaps unaware that the seeds sown in Ethiopian soil may one day take root in their own backyards. It is a poignant reminder that the fates of nations are intertwined, and the lessons of history must not be ignored.
The Power of Citizenship
AMHARA MASSACRE
In the face of such adversity, the power of citizenship emerges as the beacon of hope. The citizens of Ethiopia, who have long been subjected to the tyranny of divisive ideologies, are now reclaiming their power.
The spirit of citizenship transcends ethnic and religious boundaries. It fosters unity, promotes mutual respect, and upholds the values of justice and reason. It is this human spirit that is igniting Ethiopians against the reign of terror and encouraging them to rise above the ashes of their tormented past and strive for a better future. Ethiopian citizens from all backgrounds and walks of life must unite as citizens to survive and fight the evil facing their homeland. They must know that they have not just a right to be governed with law and order, but also the responsibility to govern themselves as citizens. No citizen should give this right away.
The Fano movement of Ethiopia sends a powerful message to the world: that the power of the people is stronger than the people in power. It is a call to action for all citizens to engage in their country’s affairs, and a reminder that citizens must exercise their power for the good of all.
On Friday, the Ethiopian Defense Force shared a brief update on its social media page about the meeting that the Deputy Chief of Staff, Abebaw Tadesse, Defense Operations Manager, General General Belay Seyoum, and Federal Police Deputy Commissioner, Zelalem Mengiste had with selected ethnic Amhara “representatives” in Addis Ababa, atAdwa Museum to be specific.
While it was reported that the meeting was about the ongoing conflict in the Amhara region of Ethiopia, questions raised during the meeting and how participants were selected – among other issues -were not highlighted in the report.
A BBC Amharic report published on Friday indicates that it was the Addis Ababa Mayor’s office that initiated the meeting which took place at Adwa Museum.
The two deputies ( from the Defense Force and Federal Police) and Head of the operations in the Defense were made to lead the meeting because they happen to be ethnic Amhara, according to sources.
It was an all day long meeting ; it started around 9 a.m. in the morning and concluded in late evening.
The closed meeting and Participants
The meeting was a closed one, according to sources. The participants were not reportedly allowed to carry on their cellular phones to the meeting.
According to BBC Amharic, intellectuals, businessmen, religious leaders, elders and Youth were made to attend the meeting. Over 200 participants who were believed to have the ability to influence “change” in the Amhara region of Ethiopia were selected. But it is still unclear on the selection process and as to who was behind the selection.
What was discussed at the meeting?
The topic of discussion was the situation in the Amhara region and the Fano resistance to the Defense force, according to sources,
“Because the demands [of Amhara people] were not addressed and people in the region faced existential threat, people are now in the movement to reverse the existential threat. You need to understand it at that level,” that was among the remarks from participants, based on a BBC Amharic report.
The killings of civilians in the Amhara region of Ethiopia was among the topics raised by the participants. They told the generals that the defense force often resorted to the killings of civilians in vengeance in the Amhara region whenever Fano forces attacked them. “We see it and we have evidence. Do you follow [the story] it?” was one the questions posed to the deputy Defense Chief of Staff and Deputy Federal Police Commission. The generals addressed it as a sort of “exaggeration of youtubers and social media talk.”
The Deputy Defense chief added “our training, our mission and our deployment does not allow that.” The action of the defense force- including the entire military operation – was portrayed as a “constitutional mission of the Defense Force.” Reputable local and international Human Rights organizations have been reporting about extrajudicial killings and drone attacks against civilians.
Arbitrary arrest of ethnic Amhara, harassment and house search without a court ( in the capital Addis Ababa) were also raised as questions during the meeting.
The response for all the demands from the deputies (of the defense force and Federal police) was “the questions you raised will be presented to Federal and regional governments.
Dr. Fisseha Eshetu, the CEO of Purpose Black, has recently made headlines by claiming that he fled Ethiopia out of fear of arrest by the government. He alleges that government agents threatened him and accused him of supporting the group known as Fano. However, an examination of the facts and Dr. Fisseha’s history reveals a different story, casting doubt on the validity of his claims.
To start with, Fisseha has made numerous attempts to align himself with the Prosperity Party (PP). Over time, he has written multiple letters to the Prime Minister and various ministerial offices, seeking to curry favor. This is evident in his efforts to even mimic the PP party logo for his own company. Such actions suggest that Fisseha was eager to gain preferential treatment from the government. His motivations became clearer when he requested the Prime Minister to act as the guardian of his company. This request was rightly denied, as the Prime Minister’s duty is to serve the entire nation, not to provide personal guardianship over individual enterprises.
Fisseha’s invocation of the term “Fano” raises significant questions about his intentions. Historically, Fisseha has been known to oppose Fano, so his sudden claim of being targeted for supporting them appears dubious. It seems likely that this is a calculated move designed to achieve two main objectives. Firstly, it seeks to mislead the public into believing that his departure from Ethiopia was a result of political persecution rather than business failures. Secondly, it aims to garner sympathy and support from the Ethiopian diaspora by portraying himself as a victim of governmental oppression.
Looking more closely at Fisseha’s business dealings over the years, a different picture emerges. There is substantial evidence to suggest that Fisseha has struggled to meet the contractual obligations he made with his customers. Reports indicate that he has failed to deliver the houses he promised and has mismanaged the funds entrusted to him by his clients. This financial mismanagement has likely left many customers without the homes they paid for, leading to significant financial losses.
Given this context, it becomes plausible that Fisseha is using the Fano narrative as a smokescreen to deflect blame from his own business failures onto the government. By doing so, he hopes to evade accountability for his actions and the financial harm he has caused to his customers.
In conclusion, it is essential for the public to approach Fisseha’s statements with a healthy dose of skepticism. His claims of government persecution appear to be a strategic maneuver to divert attention from his business failings and to shirk responsibility for the financial losses suffered by his customers. The Ethiopian diaspora, his company’s customers, and the Ethiopian government should collaborate to ensure that Fisseha is brought back to Ethiopia through Interpol. It is crucial that he faces legal proceedings to address his alleged misconduct and to ensure that his customers receive the justice and compensation they deserve.
By holding Fisseha accountable, we can ensure that justice is served and that such deceptive practices are not allowed to go unchecked. It is imperative for the integrity of both the business environment and the legal system in Ethiopia that individuals who engage in such fraudulent activities are brought to justice.
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