Residents and a church deacon gave differing death tolls after attacks on Orthodox churches and villages in Ethiopia's Oromia state, with restricted media access complicating verification, AFP reported Monday.
AFP reported that two residents estimated 44 and 51 deaths, while a deacon from one church put the toll at 46. One resident told AFP the dead included their sister and uncle and said other relatives had been taken hostage in Chole ward of Shirka district.
AFP cited witnesses who described attacks on two churches and the destruction of several homes. The Ethiopia Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said it was “following the situation.” A deacon from an affected church called for government action to restore security, AFP reported.
AFP cautioned that heavy limits on press access make verification difficult in Ethiopia. It put Oromia's population at about 40 million, making it the country's largest state, and described Muslim, Protestant and Orthodox communities there. AFP also reported a long-running insurgency and ethnic tensions, linking the conflict chiefly to concerns about political and ethnic representation. Armed groups have used religion to mobilize fighters, AFP said. A witness warned that local religious tensions could broaden into a wider crisis.
