Two Pastors Beheaded as Violence Against Christians Flares in Ethiopia

November 11, 2019

Share on

Two Ethiopian pastors have been beheaded in Sebeta, near the capital Addis Ababa, in an outburst of violence against Christians at the end of October, reported a Barnabas Fund contact.

The contact said that the situation on the ground has become “quite challenging for Christians” and many churches have been burnt this year. There is also an unverified report that a group of Christians has been forced out of the majority-Muslim town of Ginir, located 303 miles south-east of the capital.

Abiy Ahmed, prime minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopi
Abiy Ahmed, prime minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

The army was called in to restore order after 67 people were killed and 213 wounded in Addis Ababa and the Oromia region during several days of unrest.

Muslim activist and high profile media mogul, Jawar Mohammed, is thought to have provoked the unrest when he announced to his supporters that the government had removed his personal security protection. Subsequent street protests against Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed erupted in violence.

Since September 2018, violent ethnic clashes have led to some two million Ethiopians becoming internally displaced.

From Barnabas Fund contacts

Related Countries

Ethiopia