20 people killed in ethnic clashes in southern Ethiopia

By ANTHONY MITCHELL

ADDIS ABABA, Apr 12, 2005 (AP) — Members of two ethnic groups have clashed in remote areas of southern Ethiopia, killing at least 20 people and forcing others to flee their homes, aid workers said Tuesday.

Clashes broke out after an ethnic Guji man killed a member of the Gebra community whom he accused of beating his wife. The conflict quickly sucked in other members of the two communities near Hagere Mariam, a town 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.

The two communities are part of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromos.

The Ethiopian army had to intervene to restore order, aid workers in the region said on condition that they were not identified. Fighting had subsided, but the situation was still “extremely tense,” an aid worker said.

Some reports put the death toll at around 50 people, but aid workers on the ground say at least 20 people were confirmed dead.

Government officials refused to comment on the fighting.

Details of the conflict that began April 4 emerged slowly because the clashes took place in remote locations.