At least 55 people, including one US
citizen, died during a stampede following a clash between anti-government
protesters and police in Ethiopia on Sunday.
Protests over economic conditions
and widespread human rights abuses began last November in Ethiopia's
Oromia region.
Riots and violent clashes between
demonstrators and law enforcement have become disturbingly common over the last
year.
This weekend's protest was just the
latest in a string of increasingly bitter and, in many cases, fatal
confrontations between the people and the government.
On Sunday, people gathered during Ireecha, the thanksgiving festival
celebrated by the Oromo, Ethiopia's largest ethnic group
Demonstrators chant slogans while flashing the Oromo protest gesture
during Irreecha, the thanksgiving festival of the Oromo people, in Bishoftu
town, Oromia region, Ethiopia.
As
demonstrators began to gather during the celebration, police reportedly threw
tear gas and fired warning shots to quell protesters. A stampede ensued that
killed 55 people.
Police fire tear gas to disperse protesters during
Irreecha, the thanksgiving festival of the Oromo people in Bishoftu town of
Oromia region, Ethiopia, October 2, 2016.Thomson Reuters
A US
citizen, 31-year-old postdoctoral student Sharon Gray, was among those who died
and was the first foreigner to be killed during Ethiopia's tumultuous political
climate.
People assist an
injured protestor during Irrechaa, the thanks giving festival of the Oromo
people in Bishoftu town of Oromia region, Ethiopia.Thomson Reuters
Source: Reuters
Activist
groups are claiming the actual death toll is much higher than 55, with some
citing numbers as high as 300. One activist claimed that people had been driven
to jump off a cliff when troops and a helicopter gunship opened fire.
The country's two largest ethnic groups, the
Oromo and the Amhara, were sharply divided in the past but have come together
to fight the government because of perceived exclusion from Ethiopia's quickly
growing economy and the political process.
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