Borkena
Toronto – The Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church on Sunday condemned the massacre of Orthodox Christians in Arsi, Oromia region of Ethiopia.
It said that the massacre was intended to demolish the age- old value of religious coexistence.
“The constitutional rights of members of the Orthodox church to live in any part of the country and their rights to worship must be observed,” it said, calling on the Federal government and Oromia regional government to take urgent measures.
As borkena reported earlier this week, members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in East Arsi said they “do not feel secure” to live in the area and pleaded for government protection. Residents say it could happen again as there is no security arrangement to avert it.
HIs Grace Abune Elsae, Archbishop of East Arsi and Somali region, made similar calls to the regional and federal government to protect Orthodox Christians in the area.
In the latest string of massacres, which happened a few days ago, 21 Orthodox Christians were massacred in the East Arsi zone where there had been recurring targeted attacks against members of one of the oldest churches in history.
Last week, three other members of Orthodox Church were killed in the Merti district of East Arsi.
The Holy Synod expressed condolences to the victims whom it described as martyrs.
Government authorities have not remarked at the time of this writing. The killings in Arsi and other parts of the Oromia region have been linked to the military ethnic Oromo nationalist group that calls itself Oromo Liberation Group – whose goal is to establish “Oromia Republic.”
However, the armed group operating in the Arsi area seems to have a goal that transcends ethnic nationalism.
The Federal government and Oromia regional government have been asserting the security situation in the region to the point that the militant group “could no longer pose a security threat.”
Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council on Sunday joined the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Holy Synod in condemning the massacre in Arsi.
“We are deeply saddened by the terrifying accident of innocent followers of our Orthodox Christian compatriots in Sherka district of Arsi, Oromo region,” the council said in a statement it released on Sunday.
It added that “the action does not represent any religion rather than eroding respectful relations between religions.”
__
Support Borkena : https://borkena.com/subscribe-borkena/
Join our Telegram Channel : t.me/borkena
Like borkena on Facebook
Borkena Ethiopian News Youtube Channel
To submit Press Release, send submission to info@borkena.com
Add your business to Ethiopian Business Listing / Ethiopian Business Directory
Join the conversation. Follow us on X (Formerly Twitter) @zborkena to get the latest Ethiopian News updates regularly.