More than 40 people were killed in attacks on Orthodox Christian churches and villages in Ethiopia's central state of Oromia on Saturday.
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people → kill → Saturday
Oromia, Ethiopia's largest state, has faced a long-running insurgency and ethnic tensions, with armed groups using religion to inflame divisions.
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groups → face → divisions
'My sister and uncle were killed, and several of my relatives were taken hostage in Chole ward of Shirka district,' one resident said.
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resident → kill → district
They said 44 people were killed in the region, while another resident put the toll at 51.
Verifying information in Ethiopia is highly challenging due to heavy restrictions on media access.
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Verifying → say → access
The state-run Ethiopia Human Rights Commission said only that it was 'following the situation'.
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it → run → situation
'Religious tensions remain very high in the area and could escalate into a wider crisis if left unaddressed,' the first witness said.
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witness → remain → crisis
The witnesses said two churches in the region had been attacked.
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churches → say → region
Witnesses said two churches in the region had been attacked
'
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churches → say → region
Several homes belonging to targeted residents were also destroyed,' one witness said
Ethiopia is a deeply fragmented nation in the Horn of Africa, facing multiple internal conflicts (Pictured: a destroyed home)
'
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Ethiopia → belong → home
Several homes belonging to targeted residents were also destroyed,' one witness said.
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witness → belong → residents
Ethiopia is a deeply fragmented nation in the Horn of Africa, facing multiple internal conflicts, including heavy fighting that broke out last month in its northern Tigray state.
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that → fragment → state
While concerns over political and ethnic representation have been the main drivers of its conflict, religion has been used to mobilise fighters.
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religion → use → fighters
'We are deeply shocked by these tragic killings and are appealing to the government to intervene and restore security,' said a deacon of one of the attacked churches, who put the death toll at 46.
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who → shock → 46
It comes days after several people have died during clashes between the armies of southern Ethiopia's Somali and Oromia regions.
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people → come → regions
Fighting erupted on Tuesday after a Somali regional flag was hoisted in Moyale, a city near the border with Kenya jointly administered between the two Ethiopian regions.
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flag → erupt → regions
That act sparked 'a confrontation that resulted in the death of a 13-year-old girl', according to the ACLED conflict monitor, which gave a toll of at least another five dead.
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which → spark → five
'Somali fighters are firing heavy weapons from large buildings in the town while Oromia forces are fighting back,' resident Wako Ganale said.
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Ganale → fire → town
Another local, Hussein Halkeno, said that 'several civilians had been killed and wounded in the clashes'.
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civilians → say → clashes
At least 10,000 people have fled the fighting over the border to Kenya, Malik Adan, who works for the Red Cross in Kenya, told the Kenyan NTV broadcaster on Friday.
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who → flee → Friday
The borderlands of its various regions, whose tracing dates back to 1991, are often the source of clashes.
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tracing → date → clashes
For several years, the federal government has been locked in conflict with rebel movements in the Oromia and Amhara regions, the country's most populous.
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government → lock → regions
After months of tensions, fighting has also broken out again in the northern Tigray region, already the scene of a devastating war from 2020 to 2022.
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fighting → break → 2022
Diplomatic disagreements with neighbouring Eritrea have likewise led to fears of another conflict between the fractious Horn of Africa neighbours.
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disagreements → neighbour → neighbours
The Aporia
