Latest news with #OromoLiberationArmy
Al Arabiya
03-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
‘Many killed' in restive central Ethiopia: Local official
Ethiopian local authorities said Thursday that 'many civilians' were killed last week by militias in the restive Oromia region, without giving more details. Oromia, the country's most populous region, has since 2018 been in the grip of an insurrection by the Oromo Liberation Army, with peace talks failing to yield progress. The central region, which contains capital Addis Ababa, is racked by conflicts including political schisms, land disputes, and ethnic strife. The attack occurred on Friday, local district administrator Ketema Wakuma told AFP, roughly 300 kilometers (180 miles) west of Addis Ababa. 'The extremist forces of Fano had committed the atrocity that killed many civilians,' he said, a reference to the 'self-defense' Fano militia, which have clashed in neighboring Amhara region against government forces since April 2023. 'The exact number of people killed is not known,' he added. Local independent outlet the Addis Standard said at least 20 were killed in the incident, and three kidnapped. The Fano, a largely autonomous group with no central command, have been increasing their attacks against security forces and managed to briefly seize towns in Amhara several times. Armed conflicts are currently roiling Ethiopia's two most populated regions, Amhara and Oromia. The country endured one of the deadliest conflicts in recent decades in northern Tigray, when federal forces clashed with Tigrayan rebels between 2020 and 2022. At least 600,000 were killed.
Al-Ahram Weekly
03-04-2025
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
'Many killed' in restive central Ethiopia: Local official - Africa
Ethiopian local authorities said Thursday that "many civilians" were killed last week by militias in the restive Oromia region, without giving more details. Oromia, the country's most populous region, has since 2018 been in the grip of an insurrection by the Oromo Liberation Army, with peace talks failing to yield progress. The central region, which contains capital Addis Ababa, is racked by conflicts including political schisms, land disputes, and ethnic strife. The attack occurred on Friday, local district administrator Ketema Wakuma told AFP, roughly 300 kilometres (180 miles) west of Addis Ababa. "The extremist forces of Fano had committed the atrocity that killed many civilians," he said, a reference to the "self-defence" Fano militia, which have clashed in neighbouring Amhara region against government forces since April 2023. "The exact number of people killed is not known," he added. Local independent outlet the Addis Standard said at least 20 were killed in the incident, and three kidnapped. The Fano, a largely autonomous group with no central command, have been increasing their attacks against security forces and managed to briefly seize towns in Amhara several times. Armed conflicts are currently roiling Ethiopia's two most populated regions, Amhara and Oromia. The country endured one of the deadliest conflicts in recent decades in northern Tigray, when federal forces clashed with Tigrayan rebels between 2020 and 2022. At least 600,000 were killed. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Armed men abduct dozens from a bus in Ethiopia
Dozens of bus passengers in Ethiopia have been abducted by armed men in the country's largest region, Oromia, as they were were travelling from the capital, Addis Ababa. Details are only just emerging of the kidnappings which took place earlier this week. The incident happened in Ali Doro, which is near an area where around 100 university students were similarly abducted as they were heading home from their campus last July. Survivors and local authorities blamed those abductions on the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), a rebel group that operates in the area. The group denied involvement at the time. Referring to this week's incident, the OLA has said it had received reports of the abductions and that it was "conducting an investigation". According to one report by a local media organisation, the passengers were heading to Debre Markos, a town in the country's Amhara region, when they were attacked by the armed men who exchanged fire with local security forces. Another report said several buses were attacked during which at least one person died. The number of abductees could be as high as 50, according to this report. The government has not yet said anything about the kidnappings and the BBC's attempts to get an official response have not been successful. Abductions of civilians - including passengers - have become increasingly common in the area. Armed groups here have in the past demanded ransoms for the release of people they hold. The OLA says it is fighting for the self-determination of Ethiopia's largest ethnic group, the Oromo. It has been classified as a terrorist organisation by the federal parliament and operates in various areas in Oromia including the district where Ali Doro is located. 'No-one can handle another war' - Tigrayans fear fresh Ethiopian conflict Thousands celebrate a chief who will only rule for eight years 'We knew Christmas before you' - the Band Aid fallout Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Africa Daily Focus on Africa
BBC News
20-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Ethiopia bus attack: Armed men abduct dozens in Oromia region
Dozens of bus passengers in Ethiopia have been abducted by armed men in the country's largest region, Oromia, as they were were travelling from the capital, Addis are only just emerging of the kidnappings which took place earlier this incident happened in Ali Doro, which is near an area where around 100 university students were similarly abducted as they were heading home from their campus last and local authorities blamed those abductions on the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), a rebel group that operates in the area. The group denied involvement at the time. Referring to this week's incident, the OLA has said it had received reports of the abductions and that it was "conducting an investigation".According to one report by a local media organisation, the passengers were heading to Debre Markos, a town in the country's Amhara region, when they were attacked by the armed men who exchanged fire with local security report said several buses were attacked during which at least one person died. The number of abductees could be as high as 50, according to this government has not yet said anything about the kidnappings and the BBC's attempts to get an official response have not been of civilians - including passengers - have become increasingly common in the area. Armed groups here have in the past demanded ransoms for the release of people they OLA says it is fighting for the self-determination of Ethiopia's largest ethnic group, the has been classified as a terrorist organisation by the federal parliament and operates in various areas in Oromia including the district where Ali Doro is located. Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Video claiming to show Ethiopian missiles is AI-generated
The video in the post contains a text overlay in English that reads 'Ethiopian Army'. The five-second clip shows what looks like long, uniform lines of intercontinental ballistic missiles being driven on a public road. A list of hashtags included in the post alludes to the Ethiopian military. Ethiopian troops are fighting armed rebels in Oromia and Amhara, the country's most populous regions. In Oromia, the army has been fighting the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) since 2018, while in Amhara, it has been clashing with Fano forces since 2023 (archived here and here). Fano was a former ally of the army during the Tigray conflict that ended in November 2022 but then rebelled in April 2023 after the government decided to disarm all local militia. Ethiopia has demonstrated its modern military capabilities on several occasions, including in August 2022 when it showed off Turkish- and Chinese-made combat drones during a military graduation ceremony. But, closer inspection reveals the footage of Ethiopia's purported missile arsenal was artificially created (archived here). An initial clue that the footage was AI-generated is evident in the faces of the people driving the first missile carrier -- or rather, their lack of faces. Closer inspection reveals the faces do not have any human features. AFP Fact Check ran the footage through an AI content detector from Hive Moderation, which concluded the video was likely AI-generated with a 97 percent probability (archived here).AFP Fact Check also used the video verification tool InVID-WeVerify to conduct reverse image searches on keyframes from the video. The results led to the same footage published on TikTok by a user called 'vietnamese__World Peace' on December 8, 2023 (archived here). The original video has a caption that explains the clip is an 'AI video'. The footage also has a watermark in the top left that says 'AI', indicating the content was created using generative software. In the false post, the 'AI' watermark has been replaced with images of the Ethiopian flag to conceal the fact that the footage was made with an AI program.
