By Borkena News Desk
TORONTO, Canada — Two major Ethiopian opposition parties have released statements condemning a reported Ethiopian Defense Force drone strike on an Ethiopian Orthodox Church monastery near Mekane Selam, Wollo, in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.
The Enat Party, one of the major opposition parties, released a statement Friday regarding the tragic incident at the monastery, citing that two nuns were killed and 14 others were taken to hospitals in Mekane Selam and Dessie. The party treats the strike as a deliberate act, labeling it “arrogant and systemic conduct” motivated by “hate.”
“Enat Party strongly believes that if this arrogant conduct continues to be restarted, together with the harm it is already causing, and considering the attacks being carried out in other areas against followers of the faith, clergy, and monasteries under the cover of targeting armed groups, these are not isolated mistakes. Rather, they constitute a systematic campaign motivated by hatred and amount to a deliberate act of destruction and extermination. The party strongly condemns these actions,” the statement read.
The party expressed condolences to the monastic community and called on Ethiopians to condemn the attack and support the monastery, as grain stores and water lines were damaged in the arid region.
Similarly, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Party (EPRP) released a firm statement condemning the attack.
“During a time when the Prosperity Party and its allies claim to be engaged in national dialogue, continued massacre of innocent civilians compels us, as we have repeatedly stated before, to question one more time: ‘What, exactly, is this dialogue about?'” the EPRP said.
The party stated that attacks on religious institutions, mosques, churches, and their followers have recurred over the past eight years. It called on the international community to stand with Ethiopians in their struggle against what it described as a regime committing atrocities.
The incident at the Arsema Monastery took place Wednesday around 10:00 local time while nuns were preparing grain for the community under a tree. Monks from the monastery stated that no Fano forces were inside the monastery at the time of the attack, though rebel forces maintain an outpost nearby along the main road to Gojjam.
Days after the incident, the Ethiopian Defense Force and the federal government have not remarked on why the monastery was targeted with a drone strike. Similar incidents involving attacks on monasteries and churches have occurred in other parts of the region and the country.
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