The High Commissioner for Human Rights in Ethiopia announced today, Wednesday, that more than 100 civilians were killed in an attack by armed men in Benishangul-Gomez (west of the country), in the latest episode of violence between rival ethnic groups in the region.
A farmer in the town of Boleyn said that he saw dozens of bodies in a field near his home, and another resident of the town added that armed men stormed the area around 6 am, and that he counted 20 bodies in a different location, while a local medic confirmed that he and his colleagues treated 38 wounded, most of them Wounded with gunshot wounds.
A nurse at the same medical facility explained, "We were not prepared for this, and we have run out of medicine."
Adding that a five-year-old boy died while being transported to the clinic.
An official in the region - who requested anonymity - indicated that the authorities have been informed of the attack and are verifying details of the identities of the attackers and victims.
He gave no additional information.
The attack took place after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Army Chief of Staff Berhanu Gula and other senior federal officials visited the region on Tuesday to call for peace, after the region witnessed a number of fatal incidents between rival ethnic groups in recent months.
The most recent major attack in the region was on November 14, when gunmen attacked a bus and killed 34 people.