At least 15 people died in a series of drone strikes that hit a camp for displaced civilians in Ethiopia's Amhara region, two sources involved in a rescue operation told Reuters on Friday, October 30. The dead included five children, the sources said.
Source: Reuters
The camp, known as Jari 2, is home to more than 1,700 people who fled previous violence. A community representative involved in the burials told Reuters there were around five explosions, that they helped bury 13 people at the camp, and that two of the injured later died at a hospital in Hayk, a town 17 kilometres away. A resident of Hayk who was helping shelter survivors also said 15 people had been killed, and said people from the camp were now sheltering in a school.
Source: Reuters
Who was behind the strikes is not established
Reuters reported that it was not clear why the camp was targeted or who was behind the attack. A spokesperson for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters said, while a local official said they were aware of the incident and were helping get medical treatment to 36 injured people. Both rescue sources said there had been no fighting in the area when the strike took place, but that members of the Amhara Fano National Movement — part of a rebel alliance spearheaded by fighters from Tigray — had been nearby. Those accounts have not been independently verified beyond the reporting cited here.
Ethiopian outlet Addis Standard reported a differing count for the same camp, saying a drone strike on the Hayiq Jari 2 camp in South Wollo Zone, Amhara, on October 29 killed at least 16 civilians and injured 22 others. Awaaz Punjab is presenting both attributed counts rather than treating either figure as settled, and no victim is being named in this report.
Source: Addis Standard
What is solid
- Reuters, citing two rescue sources, reported at least 15 dead including five children at the Jari 2 camp in Amhara
- A local official told Reuters 36 people were being treated for injuries
- The camp housed more than 1,700 displaced people
What is only claimed
- Who carried out the strikes and why the camp was hit — not established in the reporting
- The exact toll — Addis Standard reported at least 16 killed and 22 injured for the same camp
The strikes come despite a lull in the heavy fighting that erupted last month between an alliance of rebels from northern Tigray region and the government in Addis Ababa, Reuters reported. Government troops have driven back the rebel alliance since its offensive began on September 23, retook the capital of Tigray region earlier this month and advanced towards the border with Eritrea — which Ethiopia accuses of supporting the rebellion, an accusation Asmara denies.