Image- Reuters

ADDIS ABABA- A devastating aerial attack unfolded in Ethiopia's Oromiya region, claiming the lives of eight individuals and leaving five injured as they gathered to harvest corn in the compound of Baro Full Gospel Church. Witnesses and an opposition political party reported the strike, emphasizing the tragic loss of two deacons, two keyboard players from the church band, and a choir singer.

Government spokesperson Legesse Tulu promptly dismissed the accounts of the airstrike, labeling them as "an absolute lie." The incident comes in the wake of unsuccessful peace talks between the Ethiopian government and the rebel Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), a conflict that has persisted for decades, leading to sporadic attacks in Oromiya, the nation's largest region.

The targeted church, situated in the Horo Gudru Wellega zone approximately 200 km northwest of the capital Addis Ababa, witnessed the attack on Monday morning during the corn harvesting activities. A church member, who preferred to remain anonymous, recounted the horrifying scene, describing bodies and flesh scattered in the cornfield after hearing a "strange and terrifying sound" on the way to the harvest.

Despite the severity of the incident, Billene Seyoum, spokeswoman for the Prime Minister's Office, Oromiya regional spokesman Hailu Adugna, and military spokesman Colonel Getnet Adane did not provide immediate responses to requests for comments.

Badassa Lemessa, head of the local office of the state-appointed Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), acknowledged the reports of the attack and confirmed that an investigation was underway.

A second eyewitness from the area suggested that a drone strike was the likely cause of the tragedy. "It wasn't a helicopter. We couldn't see it. It was very far away, and the sound was like a drone," the witness explained.

The OLA, an outlawed splinter group of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), a previously banned opposition party that returned from exile in 2018, claimed responsibility for the attack. Both the OLA and OLF attributed Monday's deaths to a drone strike, while the government continued to deny the occurrence of the aerial assault. The ongoing conflict in the region reflects deep-seated grievances related to the alleged marginalization and neglect of people in Oromiya.