Benishangul-Gumuz conflict

Last updated
Benishangul-Gumuz conflict
Part of the Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present)
Benishangul-Gumuz in Ethiopia.svg
Location of Benishangul-Gumuz Region in Ethiopia
Date23 June 2019 – 19 October 2022 [1]
Location
Benishangul-Gumuz Region, Ethiopia
Status Peace agreement reached
Belligerents

Flag of Ethiopia.svg  Ethiopia


Flag of Ethiopia (Blank).svg Fano militias [3] 		Flag of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region.svg Gumuz People’s Democratic Movement [4]
Flag of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region.svg Benishangul People's Liberation Movement [5]
Flag of the Oromo Liberation Front.svg Oromo Liberation Army [6]
Infobox TPLF.png Tigray People's Liberation Front (alleged) [6]
Support:
Flag of Sudan.svg  Sudan (Gumuz militiamen only) [7]
Flag of Egypt.svg Egypt (alleged by Ethiopia) [8]
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Ethiopia.svg Abiy Ahmed
Flag of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region.svg Ashadli Hussein		 Flag of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region.svg Abdul Wahab Mehdi Isa (BPLM) [5]
Strength
500+[ citation needed ]
Casualties and losses
Unknown Flag of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region.svg 137 killed [9] [10]
Infobox TPLF.png 28 killed [11] [9]
437–537 civilians killed [12] [2] [13] [14] [15]
Estimated 100,000 internally displaced and 7,000 refugees [16]

The Benishangul-Gumuz conflict was an armed conflict mostly in the Metekel Zone of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region in Ethiopia that started in 2019, until peace agreement signed between the rebel groups and the government of Ethiopia in October 2022. [6]

Contents

Background

Ethnic tensions

Benishangul-Gumuz is home to several different ethnicities including the Gumuz, Berta, Shinasha, Mao, Komo and Fadashi. The Gumuz have had tensions with agricultural Amhara, Oromos, Tigrayans and Agaw migrants, who in Metekel Zone constitute minority ethnic groups. Large scale land acquisitions by both local and foreign investors have pushed the Gumuz off the land. [16] [17] The Benishangul-Gumuz constitution was revised in 2002 to designate the Gumuz, Shinasha, Berta, Komo, and Mao as “owners” and disenfranchised all other ethnic groups as residents, but not citizens, limiting their prospects in economic participation and political representation. [18] Gumuz are alleged to have formed militias such as Buadin and the Gumuz Liberation Front that have staged attacks against those seen as "settlers". [19] [20] [21] Local officials admitted and then apologized for orchestrating ethnic killings as a way to push back against the ruling Prosperity Party which was alleged to be planning to eliminate self rule for the country's ethnic groups. [16] Some Amhara groups calling for Metekel to be incorporated into Amhara. The Chairman of an Amhara group called Fano, Solomon Atanaw, said in March 2020 that Fano would not disarm without Metekel zone being part of Amhara Region. [22] At a public meeting with prime minister Abiy Ahmed on 22 December, Zebid Budna of Kamashi Zone attributed the violence to the Oromo Liberation Army. [13]

Around this time, the federal government was waging a war with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and has often blamed the TPLF for problems around the country. [17] Ashadli Hussein, president of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region, blamed the (TPLF) as holding the main responsibility [6] and stated that there were many groups associated with political parties encouraging the armed conflict. He blamed the TPLF as holding the main responsibility. [6]

Regional tension

Benishangul-Gumuz is also home to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which has caused tensions with neighboring Sudan and Egypt because of the dam's effect on the Nile river downstream. Sudan recently laid claim to Guba district in the Metekel zone closest to Sudan where the GERD lies, citing the belief that Guba was gifted to Emperor Menelik II by Khalifa Abdullahi. [16] The government has blamed Egypt of assisting the Gumuz militia. [23] The federal Ethiopian government, run by Prosperity Party (PP), attributed major responsibility for massacres to the TPLF and to the Egyptian government in relation to the GERD, with Towabeb Mehret of the PP stating, "The groups who are benefiting from this [violence] are terrorists getting orders from the TPLF". [17] Assosa University researcher Tsegaye Berhanu criticised this point of view, stating that the government "should not externalise problems and point fingers at political opposition parties. It should try to understand the real causes [of the violence] and address [them]." [17]

Course of the conflict

2019

June

The Amhara Region coup d'état attempt took place on 22 June 2019. Early on the morning of 23 June, armed men suspected to be supportive of the leader of the attempted coup killed 37 people and wounded 18 in the Metekel Zone. [24]

2020

September

Weeks of attacks on civilians took place in Metekel Zone in early September, especially in Bulan. Online social media estimated 150 deaths, which Atinkut Shitu, administrator of Metekel Zone, disputed. According to social media as summarised by Addis Standard , the targets were ethnic Amharans. Officials stated that the attacks had no ethnic motivations. [2]

October

12–40 people were killed over a personal dispute over a stolen firearm in Metekel zone. Amhara politicians claim it was an attack on members of the Amhara ethnic group by Gumuz militias. [19]

November

A 14 November attack on a passenger bus in Benishangul-Gumuz killed at least 34 people. [12] It occurred in Benishangul-Gumuz Region, as the bus was travelling between Wenbera and Chagni in the context of the wider Metekel conflict. [25] Aljazeera reported that the violence as ethnically motivated, and targeted campaign by ethnic Gumuz militias against ethnic Amhara and Agew living in Metekel. [26]

December

In December 2020, Ashadli stated that federal and regional security forces were coordinating in "annihilating 'anti-peace forces', arresting them, and confiscating firearms". [6] Vice-president of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region, Getahun Abdisa, described the region's actions in terms of a "coordinated effort between the regional government, the federal government, the regional police, anti-insurgency and security forces" of detaining members of "criminal groups". [27] On 21 December 2020, the Benishangul-Gumuz Command Post stated that it was carrying out a "door-to-door hunt" of suspected perpetrators of the violence. [13]

The command post of Metekel zone killed 23 insurgents reportedly associated with the TLPF in Dangur. [11]

Civilians were killed in the Dangur and Dibate woredas on 15 December. Amhara Region officials stated that the victims were Amharans killed for their ethnic identity. Benishangul-Gumuz officials disagreed with the identifying the conflict as "communal violence between various nations". [27] Addis Standard estimated on 22 December that Metekel Zone attacks had killed 24 people. [13]

Metekel massacre

On the night of 22–23 December 2020, a massacre and burning down of houses took place in Bikuji kebele in Metekel Zone. [21] [6] As of 23 December 2020, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission counted 100 deaths. Other sources state 220 were killed [21] of mostly Amharas, Oromos, and Shinashas by a suspected Gumuz militia. [17] Authorities responded by killing 42 suspects and arresting seven officials. [10] [28] [29]

2021

January

Between 5:00 and 7:00 on the morning of 12 January in Daletti in the Metekel Zone, 82 civilians were killed and 22 injured in an attack, according to the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC). [15]

February

On 26 February, "government security forces" killed 26 unarmed civilians in Dibate. [30]

April

An unidentified armed group took over the county of Sedal Woreda in the Kamashi Zone of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region in April 2021. [31]

May

On May 22, suspected members of the Gumuz People’s Liberation Movement entered into Nejo woreda, Oromo Region, and killed 6 people and injured one. They also burned down houses. [32]

July

On July 28, the government said they had killed 95 members of the GPDM in an operation in Awolbegu kebele, Sherkole district. 5 members of the TPLF were also said to be killed. [9]

In September 2021, special forces from Ahmara and other regions were redeployed to Benishangul-Gumuz to deal with the increased insecurity. [33]

Peace process

On 22 December 2020, Abiy Ahmed held talks with Metekel Zone residents, Minister of Peace Muferiat Kamil, army Chief of Staff Birhanu Jula Gelalcha, Ashadli Hussein, and other officials. [13] Ashadli stated that the Ministry of Peace would coordinate the creation of a reconciliation committee consisting of people from the Benishangul-Gumuz and Amhara Regions. [6]

By late February 2021, several peace forums had been held in Gilgil Beles, the capital of Metekel Zone. The federal government started creating a "multi-ethnic self-defence militia", which had 9000 members as of February 2021. Tsegaye Berhanu, a researcher at Assosa University was critical of the creation of the militia, stating, "Arming unarmed groups is like encouraging revenge, and puts the area into an endless conflict trap." [17]

On May 18, members of the Gumuz People’s Democratic Movement (GPDM) signed a memorandum of understanding with the regional government agreeing to undergo re-integration training in the region. Despite this, other armed groups like the Gumuz People’s Liberation Movement continued to perpetrate violent attacks against civilian populations delaying the Ethiopian election. In October 2022, Benishangul Gumuz regional government communication bureau said the regional government and the GPDM signed a peace agreement to resolve their differences “through dialogue.” [1] In December 2022, the regional government signed a peace agreement with the armed group Benishangul People’s Liberation Movement (BPLM) in Khartoum, Sudan. [5]

Post peace treaty

Despite the peace agreement in 2022, an attack by GPDM led to the deaths of eight people. The violence was preceded by the killing of a native Gumuz teenager in a car accident and was followed by the killing by GPDM of a shepherd. [4]

Casualties

Massacres of civilians

Mass killings of civilians in Metekel Zone started on 23 June 2019, the day following the Amhara Region coup d'état attempt, [24] and continued in September, [2] October, [19] November, [12] and December 2020, [27] [21] [6] and in January [15] and February 2021. [30]

Displaced people

More than a hundred thousand people were displaced by the conflict as of February 2021 [17] and 7,000 have fled to neighboring Sudan. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benishangul-Gumuz Region</span> Regional state in northwestern Ethiopia

Benishangul-Gumuz is a regional state in northwestern Ethiopia bordering Sudan. It was previously known as Region 6. The region's capital is Assosa. Following the adoption of the 1995 constitution, the region was created from the westernmost portion of the Gojjam province, and the northwestern portion of the Welega Province. The name of the region comes from two peoples – Berta and Gumuz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gumuz people</span> Nilotic ethnic group in Ethiopia and Sudan

The Gumuz are an ethnic group speaking a Nilo-Saharan language inhabiting the Benishangul-Gumuz Region in western Ethiopia, as well as the Fazogli region in Sudan. They speak the Gumuz language, which belongs to the Nilo-Saharan family. The Gumuz number around 250,000 individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metekel Zone</span> Region in Benishangul-Gumuz region of Ethiopia

Metekel Zone is located in the current Benishangul-Gumuz region of Ethiopia. It is bordered on the south and southwest by Kamashi, on the west by Sudan, and on the north and east by the Amhara region. The Abay River which formerly defined the western border of Gojjam, defines the Zone's boundaries with Kamashi, while the Dinder River defines part of its boundary with the Amhara region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oromo Liberation Army</span> Armed movement in Ethiopia

The Oromo Liberation Army is an armed opposition group active in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. The OLA consist primarily of former armed members of the pre-peace deal Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) who refused to disarm out of skepticism of the peace deal, and former youth protestors who grew disillusioned with nonviolent resistance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abiy Ahmed</span> Prime Minister of Ethiopia since 2018

Abiy Ahmed Ali is an Ethiopian politician who is the current Prime Minister of Ethiopia since 2018 and the leader of the Prosperity Party since 2019. He was awarded the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize "for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea". Abiy served as the third chairman of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) that governed Ethiopia for 28 years and the first person of Oromo descent to hold that position. Abiy is a member of the Ethiopian parliament, and was a member of the Oromo Democratic Party (ODP), one of the then four coalition parties of the EPRDF, until its rule ceased in 2019 and he formed his own party, the Prosperity Party.

Events of 2019 in Ethiopia.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prosperity Party</span> Political party in Ethiopia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fano (militia)</span> Amhara youth militia in Ethiopia

Fano is an ethno-nationalist Amhara militia and former protest movement. It has engaged in violent clashes throughout Ethiopia in the name of neutralizing perceived threats to the Amhara people. Fano has absorbed many units and personnel of the Amhara Regional Special Forces that did not integrate into the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF). Fano militias have been involved in armed conflicts with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), and the ENDF. They have also clashed with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) on the border of Ethiopia and Sudan.

The Metekel massacre was a massacre that took place on the night of 22–23 December 2020, in the Metekel Zone of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region, Ethiopia. As of 23 December 2020, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission counted 100 deaths. Authorities responded by killing 42 suspects and arresting seven officials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Peace (Ethiopia)</span> Ethiopian government department

The Ministry of Peace is an Ethiopian government department created in 2018 that aims to encourage peace processes to prevent and resolve armed conflict in Ethiopia and to support equitable development among the Regions of Ethiopia.

Events in the year 2021 in Ethiopia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present)</span> Episode of intrastate conflicts during Abiy Ahmeds administration

The ongoing Ethiopian civil conflict began with the 2018 dissolution of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (ERPDF), an ethnic federalist, dominant party political coalition. After the 20-year border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, a decade of internal tensions, two years of protests, and a state of emergency, Hailemariam Desalegn resigned on 15 February 2018 as prime minister and EPRDF chairman, and there were hopes of peace under his successor Abiy Ahmed. However, war broke out in the Tigray Region, with resurgent regional and ethnic factional attacks throughout Ethiopia. The civil wars caused substantial human rights violations, war crimes, and extrajudicial killings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OLA insurgency</span> Internal conflict in Ethiopia since 2018

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Persecution of Amhara people</span>

The Persecution of Amhara people is the ongoing persecution of the Amhara and Agew people of Ethiopia. Since the early 1990s, the Amhara people have been subject to ethnic violence, including massacres by Tigrayan, Oromo and Gumuz ethnic groups among others, which some have characterized as a genocide. Large-scale killings and grave human rights violations followed the implementation of the ethnic-federalist system in the country. In most of the cases, the mass murders were silent with perpetrators from various ethno-militant groups—from TPLF/TDF, OLF–OLA, and Gumuz armed groups.

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The Amhara Association of America (AAA) (Amharic: የዐማራ ማህበር በአሜሪካ) is a non-profit Amhara nationalist organization based in Charlotte, North Carolina, focused on advocating for the human rights of the Amhara people in Ethiopia.

References

  1. 1 2 "Benishangul Gumuz regional govt, rebel group sign peace agreement". Addis Standard. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Mekonnen, Siyanna; Abera, Etenesh (16 September 2020). "Analysis: Weeks long attacks on civilians leave several dead, injured in Metekel zone, Benishangul Gumuz region". Addis Standard .
  3. ↑ "All Is Not Quiet on Ethiopia's Western Front". Foreign Policy . 6 January 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Eight killed, 16 injured in latest attack by armed group in Benishangul Gumuz despite peace agreement". Addis Standard. 15 July 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 "Benishangul Gumuz region signs peace agreement with second rebel group, deal signed in Sudan". Addis Standard. 12 December 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mekonnen, Siyanne; Fasil, Mahlet (23 December 2020). "News Alert: Eyewitnesses say more than 90 killed in fresh attack in Bulen Wereda, Benishangul Gumuz; region cautions civilians to join safe villages". Addis Standard .
  7. ↑ "Containing the Volatile Sudan-Ethiopia Border Dispute". Crisis Group. 24 June 2021.
  8. ↑ https://www.swp-berlin.org/10.18449/2024C50/
  9. 1 2 3 "Benishangul authorities says over 100 armed rebels annihilated". borkena.com. 28 July 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Defence army takes measures against 42 anti-peace elements in Metekel zone". Fana Broadcasting Corporation . 24 December 2020.
  11. 1 2 "Command post kills 23 insurgents in western Ethiopia". New Business Ethiopia. 8 December 2020.
  12. 1 2 3 "Benishangul-Gumuz: Attackers kill dozens in western Ethiopia". BBC News . 23 December 2020.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Mekonnen, Siyanne (22 December 2020). "News: PM Abiy meets Metekel residents to discuss security; meeting comes a day after door-to-door 'hunt' launched to control 'criminal groups' behind attacks on civilians". Addis Standard .
  14. ↑ "Death toll from attack in western Ethiopia reaches 222, Red Cross says". Reuters. 25 December 2020.
  15. 1 2 3 "Over 80 civilians killed in latest west Ethiopia massacre: EHRC". Al Jazeera English . 13 January 2021.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 Etefa, Tsega (16 March 2021). "What's causing the violence in western Ethiopia". The Conversation.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gerth-Niculescu, Maria (23 February 2021). "Anger, fear run deep after months of ethnic violence in western Ethiopia". The New Humanitarian .
  18. ↑ Kifle, Sara (19 April 2021). "Ethnic Cleansing in Ethiopia". Harvard Political Review.
  19. 1 2 3 "12 killed in latest attack in western Ethiopia". News24. 13 October 2020.
  20. ↑ "Benishangul: At least 60 civilians mostly women, children killed". borkena.com. 12 January 2021.
  21. 1 2 3 4 "More than 100 killed in latest ethnic massacre in Ethiopia". AP. 23 December 2020.
  22. ↑ "Fano Will Not Lay Down Arms If Demands Are Not Met: Chairman". Ezega.com. 28 March 2020.
  23. ↑ Tessema, Seleshi (23 January 2021). "'Egypt working to destabilize Ethiopia, East Africa'". Andalou Agency.
  24. 1 2 Meseret, Elias (26 June 2019). "Ethiopia: 37 killed in another region after coup attempt". AP.
  25. ↑ "Gunmen in western Ethiopia kill at least 34 people in bus attack, rights body says". Reuters. 15 November 2020.
  26. ↑ "Dozens killed in 'gruesome' bus attack in western Ethiopia". Al Jazeera English. 15 November 2020. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  27. 1 2 3 Mekonnen, Siyanne (17 December 2020). "News: As killings of civilians continue in Metekel, authorities in Benishagul Gumuz, Amhara regional states step up blames". Addis Standard .
  28. ↑ "Ethiopian troops kill 42 armed men behind deadly village attack, reports state TV". Al Arabiya . 24 December 2020.
  29. ↑ "Over 80 killed in attack in Ethiopian border region with Sudan - state rights commission". Reuters. 13 January 2021.
  30. 1 2 Mekonnen, Siyanne (8 March 2021). "News: Security forces kill scores of civilians, arrest several in Metekel after attack by rebels killed three, wounded seven; Ethiopia accuses Egypt & Sudan for persistent violence". Addis Standard .
  31. ↑ "Armed group takes control of county in western Ethiopia - rights commission". Reuters. 21 April 2021.
  32. ↑ "EPO Monthly: May 2021". Ethiopia Peace Observatory. 9 June 2021.
  33. ↑ "At least 20 people killed in latest attack by armed men in Benishagul Gumuz state; UN says growing insecurity worsening humanitarian conditions". addisstandard.com. 5 March 2022.
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