County News
Hundreds of Somalis massacred in Moyale, dozens displaced
Hiboy, a mother of two left her house for fear of the militants, (Courtesy)
MOYALE—Reports from the Ethiopian town of Moyale indicates that intense ethnic-based clashes have claimed lives and forced residents to flee their homes.
The conflicts are the latest in a series of clashes that have ebbed and flowed for over 25 years. Some of the root causes remain unchanged, but new dynamics, including increased militia activity in the region and escalating tensions, make solutions more elusive.
PM Abiy Ahmed, the first ethnic Oromo to become premier, who took over from Hailemariam Desalegn, is tasked with political reforms and national unity drive for a country riled by anti-government protests since 2015.
Moyale, deep in Ethiopia’s dusty south-eastern dry lands and straddling the border with Kenya, is split sharply down the middle. The fresh tarmac of the road that divides it marks the long contested frontier between Oromia and Somali regional states.
Violent clashes often occur between the Borana Oromo and Garre Somali, mostly over territorial disagreements and over scarce resources for the two pastoralist communities.
Over 10,000 people have been displaced and 200 houses burnt since the start of the conflict two weeks ago. Oromo assailants have put an illegal checkpoint in a place called Qilemedo where they search for Somali passengers and execute them on sight.
The town of Moyale sits on a strategic route near the border with Kenya where businesses are sprouting up.
According to some sources, Oromos and Somalis are fighting over Moyale because of the Lamu Port and Lamu-Southern Sudan-Ethiopia Transport project (LAPSSET) which will be making Moyale a modern business and economic hub.
The violence erupted when some members of the Qeerroo along with elements of Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) burnt a Somali owned Isuzu vehicle along with the driver alive in front of Moyale police station (the Ethiopian side).
“There is a serious problem emerging,” said Ibrahim, an elderly Somali man in the courtyard of a hotel on the Oromo side of the road.
Somalis have pointed to the assertiveness of the new Oromo regional government that came to power in the wake of last year’s protests.
“Federalism brought this problem,” said Adam, an IGAD officer. “Oromos now think no one else can live in their area since the Prime Minister of Ethiopia is one of them.”
On Monday, militias who were shooting indiscriminately looted properties and torched hundreds of houses in Chamuq and Arboor location.
Mr Hussein Adan, a 68-year-old father of 19, said that when the militants raided their homes, they ordered them to lie down and shot some of them dead.
“Even places of worship, including mosques, became chambers of death. People were killed in a mosque as we watched. We escaped death narrowly and fled with children and cattle,” he said.
Everyone is accusing the Ethiopian government of abdicating its responsibility of protecting its citizens.
The Ethiopia’s Ministry of Federal Affairs on Wednesday announced that some district officials have been detained on suspicion that they have instigated the Moyale conflict.
However, it is not clear whether this will be enough to end the conflicts.
