Falls Church, VA (4/7/2021) – OLLAA continues to be outraged at the atrocities committed by Amhara soldiers against Oromo civilians in Wollo. This weekend, a new video surfaced on social media depicting the wanton murder of at least eight people, including injured farmers.
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Previous reports on the invasion of Wollo by Amhara regional forces documented the killing of innocent civilians, including the needless murder of injured people seeking medical assistance. However, recent video footage has shed new details on what the Oromo community now calls the Shawa Robit massacre.
Following the chaotic invasion by Amhara liyu on March 24th, where soldiers led an unlawful military campaign inside the special administrative zone of Wollo, a group of injured farmers were boarded into an ambulance bound for a hospital in a neighboring region. Before the ambulance could reach its destination, however, an angry mob of radical Amhara surrounded the ambulance, dragged its injured patients into the streets and murdered them because of their Oromo ethnicity. The mob also murdered the medical staff and ambulance driver who were assisting the victims.
While details of the victims remain sparse, OLLAA mourns those who have been identified, Mohammed Aliy Hassen, Umersha Umer Yusuf, and Ismael Mohammed.
The Shawa Robit massacre is just one of many atrocities that have occured in Wollo over the past two weeks. As of April 06, the Wollo government reports that at least 35 people have been killed, 700 farmers have lost their homes, and 9 mosques have been destroyed by soldiers.
Military attacks against non-combatants can never be justified. Amhara regional soldiers in Wollo are orchestrating the wanton killing of farmers, religious leaders, and even sick and injured people. These acts are war crimes and directly violate the Geneva Conventions for the Protection of War Victims.
OLLAA unequivocally condemns the current atrocities in Wollo and joins Members of Parliament Aminaat Indris and Mahamed Hassen in urging Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to order the removal of all federal and regional soldiers from Wollo and investigate the unlawful military campaign by Amhara Liyu forces.
In response to ongoing conflicts and crises, OLLAA have began an Emergency Preparedness Team (OEPT) fundraiser in order to manage many emergencies facing Oromos both outside and inside of Ethiopia.