Witnesses say new fighting in Ethiopia’s Oromia kills dozens

By CARA ANNA
Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Intense fighting has erupted between Ethiopian government forces and Oromo Liberation Army rebels in the country’s restive Oromia region, leading to what witnesses said were “several dozen” casualties in the past week. The fighting in Oromia, the largest of Ethiopia’s federal states, intensified as peace efforts continue to end the bigger, separate conflict with Tigray forces in northern Ethiopia. A witnesses tells The Associated Press in the town of Bila that he saw bodies scattered on the ground following an alleged aerial attack on Nov. 2. The OLA claims it stands for the security of the Oromo people, Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, but Ethiopia has labeled it a terrorist organization.