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Witnesses accuse rebels of killing hundreds in Ethiopia

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Hundreds of people belonging to the Amhara ethnic group were killed by rebels in Ethiopia’s Oromia region over the weekend, survivors said Monday, but the insurgents denied the claims, blaming government forces for the deaths.

Fighting erupted on Saturday morning in Oromia’s Gimbi district between pro-government forces and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), a rebel group which is branded a terrorist organisation by the Ethiopian government.

Together, Amharas and Oromos make up the vast majority of Ethiopia’s 115 million people and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government has previously accused the OLA of ethnic massacres.

Eyewitnesses, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, said the attack lasted several hours, with unclaimed bodies still lying on the streets.

“I lost my 16-year-old daughter in the attack shot by a bullet from the (OLA) gunmen,” one Amhara man said, adding that the rebels had blocked the main highway.

Another man told AFP he had “personally helped bury 61 bodies on Sunday, with the total number of buried bodies on Sunday being 351 in total.”

“The intention of all these attacks is to force us to leave,” he said, adding that “our houses and properties have been destroyed.”

“I want to leave this area, go to my ancestral region… that at least would allow me to live in peace,” he said.

The Oromia regional authorities said in a statement that the OLA had “committed a cruel attack on innocents” and vowed to take strong measures against the insurgents.

But OLA spokesman Odaa Tarbii blamed the region’s own pro-government militia for the killings and called for an independent investigation into the matter.

“The Abiy regime is again blaming the OLA for atrocities committed by its own retreating fighters,” he said on Twitter.

‘Zero tolerance’
Prime Minister Abiy said on Twitter that his government had “zero tolerance for horrific acts claiming lives.”

“Attacks on innocent civilians and destruction of livelihoods by illegal and irregular forces is unacceptable,” he said.

News of the Amhara killings comes days after the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission accused security forces of summarily executing residents in Gambella, suspecting them of collaborating with OLA fighters who attacked the southwestern region last week.

The EHRC, a state-affiliated independent rights body, said in a statement that security forces had carried out “door-to-door executions” in Gambella, which borders Oromia.

The OLA last year forged an alliance with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which has been locked in conflict with federal forces in northern Ethiopia since November 2020.

Ethiopia’s government declared a “humanitarian truce” in March, allowing limited supplies of international aid into Tigray for the first time since mid-December.

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Africa

Escalating Jihadist Retaliation Claims Over 120 Lives in Burkina Faso

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Escalating Jihadist Retaliation Claims Over 120 Lives in Burkina Faso

Escalating Jihadist Retaliation Claims Over 120 Lives in Burkina Faso

Human Rights Watch (HRW) revealed on Wednesday that jihadist groups in Burkina Faso have intensified attacks on civilians, particularly targeting those accused of collaborating with government forces or refusing to join their ranks.

The conflict, fueled by insurgents linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS, has plagued the West African nation for nearly a decade, spilling over from neighbouring Mali.

Under military leader Ibrahim Traore, Burkina Faso has recruited thousands of civilian volunteers, known as VDPs, to assist in the fight. However, this move has provoked increasingly violent reprisals from jihadist factions, leading to tragic consequences for local communities.

HRW documented seven attacks between February and June, resulting in the deaths of at least 128 civilians.

These assaults, including a massacre in a Catholic church and strikes on displaced persons camps, were attributed to al-Qaeda affiliate Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) and ISIS-linked Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS).

Witnesses claimed some attacks were motivated by civilians’ involvement with government forces.

“We are between a rock and a hard place,” a 56-year-old villager lamented, describing the dire situation faced by many.

HRW’s report also highlighted that some villagers were killed after being forced by authorities to return to areas previously overtaken by jihadists.

In response, Burkina Faso’s justice minister dismissed HRW’s claims of slow prosecutions, asserting that human rights violations by insurgents are being investigated.

The junta, which came to power following a coup in 2022, faces growing criticism for its handling of the crisis, with analysts noting a further deterioration in security under Traore’s leadership.

Despite Traore’s promises to restore stability, the conflict shows no signs of abating, with HRW citing the recent massacre in Barsalogho, where hundreds were killed, as one of the deadliest incidents in the country’s history.

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Tunisian court jails opposition leader, bans him from presidential elections

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A Tunisian court sentenced opposition party leader Lotfi Mraihi, a potential presidential election candidate, to eight months in prison on a charge of vote buying, his lawyer said on Friday.

The court also banned Mraihi, leader of the Republican Union Party and one of the most prominent critics of President Kais Saied, from running in presidential elections for life, his lawyer Omar Ismail said.

Mraihi will appeal the sentence, Ismail added.

Opposition parties, many of whose leaders are in prison, have accused Saied’s government of exerting pressure on the judiciary to crack down on his rivals in the 2024 elections and pave the way for him to win a second term.

Elected president in 2019, Saied has not officially announced his candidacy for the vote expected to be held on Oct. 6.

Still, it is widely anticipated that he will seek a second term.

He said last year he would not hand power to what he called non-patriots.

The opposition says fair and credible elections cannot be held unless imprisoned politicians are released and the media can do its job without pressure from the government.

In 2021, Saied dissolved parliament and began ruling by decree in a move the opposition have described as a coup.

Saied said his steps were legal and necessary to end years of rampant corruption among the political elite.

(Reuters/NAN)

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Nigerian, South African Defence Chiefs Unite Against Continental Security Challenges

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Nigerian, South African Defence Chiefs Unite Against Continental Security Challenges

Nigerian, South African Defence Chiefs Unite Against Continental Security Challenges

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Christopher Musa, has called for stronger ties between the Armed Forces of Nigeria and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to tackle the complex security issues facing Africa.

Gen. Musa made this appeal during an official visit to his South African counterpart, Gen. Rudzani Maphwanya, in Pretoria, South Africa. The call for enhanced cooperation was highlighted in a statement released by Brig.-Gen. Tukur Gusau, Acting Director of Defence Information, on Tuesday in Abuja.

“The meeting is a panacea to addressing the multifaceted challenges bedevilling the continent,” Gen. Musa emphasized. He underscored the importance of mutual cooperation and strengthening bilateral ties to combat regional security threats.

During their closed-door meeting, both leaders discussed various strategies to address these challenges, focusing on the exchange of expertise and forging stronger ties for the betterment of the continent.

Gen. Musa was honoured with Cannon Gun Salutes, a mark of high regard, during his visit. Brig.-Gen. Gusau noted the significance of the meeting between the two largest economies and military powers in Africa.

The meeting also saw the presence of SANDF Chiefs of Intelligence, Policy and Plans, International Affairs, and Joint Operations, among other departmental chiefs, highlighting the comprehensive nature of the discussions aimed at enhancing regional security cooperation.

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