Social:Woybela Mariam Church incident
| Woybela Mariam Church incident | |
|---|---|
| Location | Woybela Mariam Church, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| Date | 20 January 2022 |
| Target | Congregants at feast celebration |
| Weapons | |
| Deaths | 3 |
| Injured | 10 |
On 20 January 2022, a group of Oromia police officers fired at Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo followers while the congregants transporting a tabot to Woybela Mariam Church during feast day of Saint Michael in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing three people from direct gunshot, and injuring ten other people.[1]
Event
Following an altercation with congregants bearing Ethiopian flags and wearing the flag's colors, Oromia police opened fire on congregants of the Orthodox Tewahedo Church while they were transporting a tabot to Woybela Mariam Church during the feast day of Saint Michael. They threw tear gas at the children's choir to stop the ritual progression. Three people were killed by the police's gunfire while ten people were injured.[2][3]
Response
The event stirred up criticism directed at Abiy Ahmed's government, who was blamed for not quickly responded to the action. Abune Melke Tsadek, Archbishop of Addis Ababa, decided to temporarily keep the tabot at Keraneyo Medhanealem Church in response to the violence. In the aftermath, the Ethiopian Orthodox followers began mobilizing to resume the procession.[2]
References
- ↑ "Ethiopian gov't continue to arrest journalist after State of Emergency is lifted" (in en-US). 2022-02-17. https://borkena.com/2022/02/17/ethiopian-govt-continue-to-arrest-journalist-after-state-of-emergency-is-lifted/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Oromia police killed at least three Orthodox church followers during epiphany celebration in Addis Ababa" (in en-US). 2022-01-21. https://borkena.com/2022/01/21/ethiopia-oromia-police-killed-at-least-three-orthodox-church-followers/.
- ↑ "በአዲስ አበባ ታቦት በማስገባት ሥነ ሥርዓት ላይ በተከሰተ ችግር የሰው ሕይወት ጠፋ" (in am). 2022-01-21. https://www.bbc.com/amharic/60079249.
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