Ethiopia: News - 16 Killed, More Than 16 Women and Children Abducted in Armed Attack in Gurage Zone, Residents Say

What the report says

Residents in Abeshige District of Ethiopia’s Gurage Zone said an armed attack late on Monday night left at least 16 civilians dead and more than 16 women and children abducted. The account, published by Addis Standard and distributed by AllAfrica, places the violence in Central Ethiopia Regional State and says it began around 8:30 p.m. on September 14 in Walda Town, with the first reported killing involving a child.

According to the residents quoted in the report, people gathered at a mourning house after the initial death, and armed men then opened fire on those assembled there. The same witnesses said the attackers also took more than 30 cattle and that survivors fled the area. A second resident gave a lower death toll, saying bodies were still being recovered, and claimed ransom demands were being made for some of those abducted. The report says both residents described a failure by security forces to intervene, despite the presence of an Ethiopian National Defense Force camp nearby.

The alleged attackers were identified by residents as belonging to an armed group referred to as Fano. Addis Standard said it could not independently verify the casualty figures or circumstances from the photos and video it reviewed. As of publication, local and regional officials had not issued a public statement. The report adds that the incident follows earlier violence in areas along the Gurage Zone and West Shewa Zone border, underscoring continuing insecurity in parts of central Ethiopia.