Merawi massacre
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| Merawi massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of the War in Amhara | |
| Location | 11°24′31″N 37°9′39″E / 11.40861°N 37.16083°E Merawi, West Gojjam, Amhara Region, Ethiopia |
| Date | 29–30 January 2024 |
Attack type | Shootings, robbery, extrajudicial killings |
| Deaths | 50–100 |
| Perpetrator |  Ethiopian National Defense Force |
| Motive | Revenge for an attack by Fano |
11°24′31″N 37°9′39″E / 11.40861°N 37.16083°E
The Merawi massacre was the extrajudicial killing and massacre of 50 to 100 residents in the town of Merawi in the Amhara Region, Ethiopia by the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF),[1][2][3] between 29 and 30 January 2024.[4] The massacre occurred after an attack on an Ethiopian military garrison by the Fano militia. Four survivors attributed the motivation for the massacre as revenge for the Fano attack.[1] An investigation was launched by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC).[3]
On 29 January 2024 during the War in Amhara, Fano attacked an Ethiopian military encampment in Merawi.[1] Fighting in the town between Fano and the ENDF lasted for six hours, in which Fano withdrew from the town, leaving it in full control of the ENDF.[2][4]
According to four survivors interviewed by The Globe and Mail, the ENDF was "determined to take revenge" for Fano's attack.[1]
Massacre
On the afternoon of 29 January 2024, when Merawi was back under ENDF control, the ENDF carried out door-to-door searches, interrogated residents and accused them of sheltering Fano militants, and executed 100 men, women and children, of ages from 14 to 96. A witness interviewed by BBC News saw 13 people executed on Merawi's main street.[2] The sound of gunfire was "constant" for much of the day.[4]
The heaviest killings took place in 02 Kebele. Residents were robbed by the Ethiopian military officers prior to being executed.[2] A 30-second video clip that was distributed on online social media was geolocated to "a business district in Merawi along the A3 highway, [bisecting] the town". The film was consistent with the witnesses' statements.[1]
A resident, whose brother was one of the victims, told Addis Standard of seeing 50 dead bodies in Merawi's streets after the massacre.[2] A monk stated that he saw twelve ENDF soldiers take 18 young men out of a bar, beat them, line them up, force them to kneel, and execute them.[1]
Three witnesses interviewed by The Guardian described the victims as having been shot by bullets to the head.[4] Birhanu, a civil servant, stated that identifying the victims was difficult due to their being shot in the head, describing the event as "the sort of thing in horror movies".[1]
The killings continued throughout the night and the morning of 30 January.[1][4]
Aftermath
Investigations
The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) stated on 6 February 2024 that 80 civilians, mostly men, had been killed in house-to-house searches.[6] On 13 February 2024, the EHRC stated that it had identified 45 of the civilians extrajudicially killed by "government security forces" in the massacre, and that it expected the true number of victims to be higher.[3]
