At least 60 Orthodox Christians killed in attacks in Ethiopia’s Oromia region

At least 60 Orthodox Christians were killed in separate attacks on October 20 and 24 in Ethiopia’s Oromia region, with more than 20 others seriously wounded and 20 homes burned down, church officials said in a statement late on Monday.“We have heard with deep sorrow the report submitted by the Diocese Office,” the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church’s Holy Synod said, describing the killings as “extremely tragic cruelty and suffering inflicted on our citizens”.The church said 14 people were killed on October 20 in Gora Silingo, Angada Kebele, in Merti district, while another 46 were killed on October 24 in Tereta, Chole and Birbo in Shirka district.Both districts are located in the Arsi Zone of central Ethiopia’s Oromia region.The Holy Synod condemned the killings, saying the violence violated constitutional protections for life and religious freedom and threatened Ethiopia’s tradition of peaceful coexistence among different faiths.It called on government institutions to publicly…