Survivors Of Benishangul-Gumuz Attack Recount Stories Of Escape And Loss

I am sharing a series of posts that I hope will shed light on what has been happening to ethnic Amhara over the last 4 years since I began to cover the initial northern war and episodes of mass murder and ethnic cleansing in the Oromia region against ethnic Amhara.

Enkayehush Negede, 65 fled the Benishangul-Gumuz region and is now staying in a displaced persons camp on December 31, 2020 in Chagni, Ethiopia. Ethnic violence in Benishangul-Gumuz, particularly against members of the Amhara ethnicity has been escalating in recent months, including a deadly attack on December 23 in the Metekel Zone that left more than 207 people dead.

I was displaced from Gilgel Beles in the Benishangul-Gumuz region. I was living there for a long period of time and I am indigenous to Gilgel Beles. When the Gumuz came they took 35 cattle and destroyed everything we had. I was left with nothing there and they forced us to the Amhara region. It was horrific and terrifying to see people slaughtered by knife there and killed and their flesh taken and eaten by the Gumuz.

Enkayehush recounts

We didn’t even have any a sleeping mattress so why did the government collect us here? We should have been served humanitarian aid. We need that part. You see I am elderly and I am weak because we don’t have humanitarian aid here. Even people here have gotten sick and one individual has died because of the shortage of humanitarian aid.

Dying by gun bullet is a relief rather then they kill us by using a knife. That is horrifying and barbaric. They have even slaughtered pregnant woman and eaten their bodies. My husband is getting sicker and as he’s found in hospital right now and its is because of the horrible tragedy we experienced in Benishangul-Gumuz”.