Kidnapping and extortion cases are on the rise, many of which are linked to the ongoing political and security crisis in the country. But authorities are struggling to keep up, despite growing public concern.
Ethiopia is grapping with a wave of kidnappings amid a broader security crisisImage: Depositphotos/IMAGO
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On the morning of July 2nd 2024, three public buses carrying over 160 school students were travelling to Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, for the summer holidays. Most of the students were from Debark University in the Amhara region.
At approximately 10 a.m., gunmen intercepted the buses near Garba Guracha town in Oromia province — around 155 kilometers north of Addis Ababa. They kidnapped the students and took them to a remote area where the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) is believed to operate.
Two days after the incident, the families of the kidnapped students were contacted for ransom.
"I received a call from my sister on Friday July 4th after not hearing from her for two days," a sister of one of the kidnapped students told DW.
"The phone call was interrupted, but the kidnappers later called me themselves, demanding 500,000 Ethiopian Birr (ETB) ($6,200, €5,700) for her release," she added.
Another family from Hawassa received a ransom demand of 700,000 ETB. "We cannot afford to pay such a large amount," said the elder brother of a kidnapped student.
Ethiopia's Amhara region scarred by conflict
The widespread destruction, displacement and suffering in strategic towns in Amhara came as Tigrayan fighters and Ethiopian government and local Amhara forces wrestled for control over the region.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Fighting in the hills
Tigrayan fighters are believed to have suffered defeat in the hills around Mezezo in the Amhara region in early December. They had been advancing toward the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The fighting lasted five days, according to local eyewitnesses. People stayed indoors during heavy fighting, terrified by the sound of artillery. In the area, bodies are decaying along the road and in fields.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Destruction in Mezezo
Ayu Berhan hid in a forest for nine days in late November as Tigrayan fighters occupied her village of Mezezo, some 200 km (125 miles) northeast of Addis Ababa. The 55-year-old found her house destroyed by artillery when she returned. "[In the forest] we were hungry and thirsty. There were also children. We lost everything and when we came back to our home, we lost a place to stay," she told DW.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Life is slowly resuming
The TPLF had controlled the strategic towns of Kombolcha and Dessie for several weeks before retreating. Life in those places is slowly resuming, but there are shortages of food items, fuel and other essential items. Electricity and running water have yet to return.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Destroyed hospital
The hospital is a referral center for about 8 million people. It was used as a military hospital by both the Ethiopian army and Tigrayan fighters at separate times. Locals sad Tigrayan fighters looted it before leaving. "The medicine they didn't take, they made it unusable," said Melaku Sete, who runs the now destroyed oxygen center at Dessie hospital. The region faces a shortage of oxygen.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Wollo University badly damaged
The institution in Dessie was badly damaged by heavy artillery and looted. "It's really devastating," said Menagesha Ayele, the campus director. He attributes the damage to Tigrayan forces. "I didn’t expect it. This is the university where their children used to study for their bachelor's and master's." Eyewitnesses said soldiers from both sides of the conflict used the campus at different times.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Aid warehouses looted
In Kombolcha, dozens of warehouses used for storing international and local humanitarian aid were heavily looted. Local officials have accused Tigrayan fighters, but humanitarian sources said the community played a major part in taking food and other items. Other armed groups are also believed to have later participated in the looting.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Mass grave in Teraf
In the village of Teraf, 21 unarmed civilians and four fighters were buried in this mass grave. Teraf is located within the Oromo special zone in the Amhara region. Residents said Oromo and Tigrayan rebels targeted Amharic-speaking people, a minority in the area. Children aged 8 and 12 are said to be among the victims.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Shot by soldiers
Arabie Hassen, 17, said she was home with her mother and siblings when a fighter entered and shot at her. "It is better to die than living with this wound because it makes me suffer me a lot," Arabie told DW. Her cousin (pictured on the phone) was killed in an adjacent house on that day. Arabie's mother, Fatima, said her children still have nightmares as a result of the shooting.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Displaced in Debre Berhan
Schools in Debre Berhan, three hours by road from Addis Ababa, are now shelters for some of the hundreds of thousands of people who fled the fighting. "There's nothing to eat. There are children here... people have left their homes without anything," said Mamito Belachew, who came from Ataye. "We are told now it's peaceful there but if we go, there is nothing. The houses are burned down."
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Militias on patrol
Local volunteer militias are still on the lookout for Tigrayan fighters. The militias are often farmers or civil servants with little military training. "We use this hill to watch for remaining TPLF militias, and when we find them, we will apprehend them," said Bahere Kefele, who joined a militia group in Shewa Robit. "We can't assume they've left our area. We must be alert."
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
Shewa Robit economy shattered
Shewa Robit, a town of about 50,000 people on the highway between Dessie to Addis Ababa, was occupied by Tigrayan fighters for several days. They destroyed several banks and hotels, leaving behind a shattered economy. Local officials said it could take years for the town and the region to recover from the damage.
Image: Maria Gerth-Niculescu/DW
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Government statement confuses families
A week after the kidnapping, the Oromia regional state announced that 160 of the 167 kidnapped students had been released through a government operation coordinated with local residents.
"We managed to release 160 students and are still working to free the remaining seven," said regional spokesman Hailu Adugna.
However, the families of the kidnapped students dispute this claim. "While listening to the government's statement, I was talking to my sister, who was still in the kidnappers' hands," said the sister of one of the students.
The elder brother from Hawassa also expressed skepticism: "We have seen nothing to support the government's statement. Where are the released students, including my sister?"
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Kidnappings spike in Oromia and Amhara regions
While students have frequently been targeted, workers from various industries, including cement and sugar factories, as well as civil servants and farmers, have also been kidnapped and held for ransom.
In September 2023, six Ethiopian Electric Power workers were abducted while working on the Aluto geothermal project near Batu town in East Shewa Zone, Oromia. The kidnappers demanded 10 million ETB for their release — significantly more than previous cases.
"The company is doing its best to secure their release peacefully," Ethiopian Electric Power spokesman Moges Mekonnen told DW at the time.
Despite the best efforts of victims' families, kidnappings still often end in tragedy. In mid-June in the town of Kemise in the Amhara region, a driver in his 30s was kidnapped. His kidnappers initially demanded a ransom of 2 million ETB, which the man's father negotiated down to 500,000 ETB.
After paying the ransom, the father received no further contact. A few days later, his son's body was found a few kilometers from town.
"They killed my son after receiving the ransom," the father told DW.
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A troubling trend
The 2020 kidnapping of 17 students from Dembidollo University in Oromia marked the beginning of a troubling trend in Ethiopia. As the country recovers from the Tigray War, which ended in 2022, and grapples with an ongoing civil conflict, many Ethiopians are raising concerns over the ability of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's administration to address the security crisis.
In response to the Debark University kidnappings, the US Ambassador to Ethiopia, Ervin Massinga, wrote on social media platform X: "Recent and frequent kidnappings in Oromia and Amhara regions show how prolonged conflict emboldens criminals and weakens (the) rule of law."
In the vast majority of cases, armed groups are accused of carrying out the kidnappings: The OLA, which was blamed for the Debark University kidnappings, claims to fight for the "self-determination" of the Oromo ethnic group and has been labelled a terrorist group by the Ethiopian parliament.
However, a lack of thorough investigation has made it difficult for authorities to properly trace and tackle the problem, despite growing public concern. While some kidnappers are primarily driven by financial gain, others may be pursuing a political agenda.
In its latest annual report, the Ethiopia Human Rights Commission (ECHR) stressed that, "human rights violations against civilians in the context of armed conflict are still concerning and in effect have become more widespread," adding that the "growing kidnapping of civilians, including for ransom" was of "grave concern."
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