Picnews
At least 14 people, including children and pregnant women, have been killed in multiple drone strikes on a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, according to eyewitness accounts.
Three witnesses told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Friday that four consecutive drone strikes hit the camp on Thursday, leaving several people dead and others injured.
One witness, identified as Yasin, who requested anonymity, said 14 bodies had been buried at the camp, while two other victims died while receiving medical attention.
Two other residents also confirmed the casualties, reporting death tolls of 14 and 15 respectively. They said several children were among those killed.
The attack reportedly occurred as students were returning home from school at the camp, located about 400 kilometres northeast of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.
One of the witnesses, Ahmed, said his sister-in-law was among those killed, adding that her remains could not be immediately recovered following the explosion.
Meanwhile, the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a non-governmental organisation that monitors and analyses armed conflicts, estimated that between 16 and 23 people were killed in the strikes, while an unspecified number sustained injuries.
The organisation, however, did not indicate whether children were among the casualties.
The incident comes amid continued drone operations by Ethiopian federal forces in Amhara, the country’s second-most populous region, which has more than 20 million residents.
According to United Nations figures published in July, nearly 500,000 people have been displaced in the region.
AFP reported that attempts to obtain comments from the spokesperson of the Ethiopian federal army had not received a response as of Friday.
Witnesses said the displaced residents at the affected camp originally came from neighbouring Oromia, Ethiopia’s most populous region.
The region has experienced prolonged armed conflict involving federal forces and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), which the Ethiopian government has designated a terrorist organisation. The group has been engaged in an armed struggle against federal authorities for more than eight years.
