Borkena news Desk
TORONTO, Canada — Additional details have emerged regarding a deadly drone strike that killed two nuns and injured eleven monks at the Askeites Aregawi and St. Arsema Monastery near Mekane Selam in the South Wollo zone of the Amhara region, located approximately 180 kilometers southwest of Dessie.
A report published by DW Amharic indicates that one nun died instantly at the scene, while the second succumbed to her injuries while being transported to Mekane Selam Hospital. The information was confirmed by the monastery’s abbot, Abba Elias, alongside the head of the district diocese office.
According to eyewitness accounts from monks inside the compound, aerial surveillance preceded the strike. Abba Woldemichael reported that a drone circled the area for three to four hours before launching the attack at approximately 10:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday. While acknowledging that Fano militia forces operate near the vicinity and maintain outposts outside the monastic grounds, residents emphasized that the strike directly impacted the women’s monastic quarters.
At the time of the bombardment, residents were actively engaged in grain preparations ahead of the upcoming Keremet rainy season. The impact severely damaged several compound structures, including the Bete Egziabher building, a workshop used for manual crafts, meal preparation facilities, vital grain stores, and local water supply lines.
Neither the Ethiopian Federal Government nor the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) has issued an official statement regarding the incident. Similarly, the Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has yet to release a formal response.
This video from France 24 provides additional context on how the ongoing armed conflict in the Amhara region continues to threaten ancient historical monasteries and rural communities. Armed conflict threatens Ethiopia’s ancient monasteries
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Here are typical ‘reports’ that I see on Ethiopia-related websites & YouTube channels:
[KEY: Domestic Terrorists [DTs]/The Enemy Within [TEW]: DTs & TEW are Egypt & Eritrea’s Proxies that destabilize Ethiopia (‘Amara Fanno’, TPLF-TDF, OLF-IFLO, etc.)].
1). “Drone Strikes [DS] Killed Civilians”:
i). Drone Operators [DO] strike in real time after zeroing-in on targets. So, are those civilians aiding-and-abetting DTs or were the DTs using them as Human Shields?
ii). Do some DO intentionally cause such civilian collateral damage to cause uproar and tarnish the ENDF’s image? Shouldn’t the ENDF review each DS and clean-up its ranks?
iii). Is such reporting just another misinformation-disinformation smear campaign against the ENDF? Do the reporting media outlets double-check the credibility of their stories?
2. “Amara Fanno Leaders/TPLF-TDF Leaders/OLF-IFLO Leaders – Dodged DS”: Well, how on earth did the leaders dodge DS, but the DS hits civilians right there? How did the leaders know about the DS? Again, the ENDF should look in to it and clean-up its ranks!
3). “Amara & Oromo Human Rights Violations [HRV]”: Honesty is Honorable! Yet, Honesty is missing in MOST reports! For example, why didn’t MOST media report these?
i). TPLF Massacred 1563 Amaras at MayKadra:→ youtu.be/uMAFyUzuMPQ?t=61
ii). TPLF’s harrowing savagery against Amaras:→ youtu.be/vQWFeryiGZs?t=3175
iii). OLF-IFLO’s Barbarism against Oromos:→ youtu.be/W3UpBQ0XfhA
iv). Fanno’s Alliance with Amaras’ Mortal Enemies:→ youtu.be/1UZ5nbrKtQY
As I have said before all active places of worship, civilian quarters and public infrastructures should be off limits as military targets. They should never be used as resting places or temporary command posts by any armed group. If that happens both sides should be held responsible for any loss of innocent civilian lives and damages to the public infrastructures and utilities. Apparently, this could be one of them. There should no excuses and nobody should be proud of it.
Many thanks to the editors of Borkena for doing their best as their available resources allowed, giving us an independent report on this sad tragic incidence.