ETHIOPIA · POLITICS
Key Facts
- The place Shirka is a district in Arsi zone, Oromia region, about 270 km (170 miles) south of Addis Ababa.
- What happened Residents say security forces arrested 24 to 27 people after the attack of Saturday 24 October 2026.
- Who was taken Those held include women who came to bury relatives and people who helped lift the dead.
- Still held Church sources say 13 people were still in custody and none had been taken to court.
- The silence Local officials did not answer calls and the federal government has made no statement on the killings.
Security forces in Ethiopia’s Oromia region have arrested residents who went to help the wounded or bury the dead after the attack in Shirka district on Saturday 24 October 2026, residents and church sources say. About 13 people, some of them women, are still held, and none has been brought before a court.
For US readers, the arrests deepen a crisis in which the Ethiopian Orthodox Church says 60 of its members were killed in two attacks, and they are likely to draw questions from the large Ethiopian-American community, many of them Orthodox. Our earlier report on the Oromia attacks has the church’s toll.
What Happened
The attack in Shirka began around 22:00 on Saturday 24 October, in an area where Orthodox Christians live as a minority. The Holy Synod, the governing council of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, says 46 people died in Shirka and 14 more earlier, on Tuesday 20 October, in nearby Merti district.
Residents say security forces surrounded the homes of survivors that same evening and held some people overnight. On Sunday 25 October, they say, officers gathered many more people and took them away.
Who Was Taken
Residents of Gobesa, the district capital, say 27 people were arrested, including women with children. One resident said the detainees were people who had been asked to help lift the dead, and women who had come to bury their father, mother and brother.
Church sources put the number at about 24, and say some were freed after a few days while 13 remain in custody. One woman who was held with her two children was released after one day.
Residents say people who came to console families, or who helped carry the wounded, were also taken. They add that more people are being sought, and that none of those held has appeared in court.
The Accusation
A church source says the detainees are accused of giving information to the armed attackers, and calls the charge false and unbelievable. Some residents say officers told them that those killed were supporters of Fano, the Amhara armed groups, and that the mourners were their backers.
Residents and church sources interviewed do not agree with that account, and say the detainees are ordinary civilians, among them farmers and small traders. Several residents asked not to be named for fear of arrest, and some are hiding instead of receiving mourners.
One man, who lost five relatives including his sister, says security forces are looking for him and he cannot sit with mourners. Another said he feared that officers might soon come to arrest people at the funerals themselves.
Silence From the Government
Calls and messages to the zone and district administrations asking why people were arrested went unanswered. The federal government has made no public statement on the killings or the arrests.
What It Means for You
The State Department’s Ethiopia advisory has been Level 3, Reconsider Travel, and warns of armed conflict in several regions. Americans with plans in Oromia should check the current text and avoid Arsi.
Investors and donors watching Ethiopia should note that arrests of mourners, if confirmed, would raise human-rights questions at a time when the country seeks foreign money. Ethiopian-Americans with relatives in Arsi may find it hard to learn who is held, because no list has been published.
What Is Not Known
It is not known how many people are held, because counts run from about 13 to more than 50 depending on the day and the source. No charge has been made public, and no court has heard any case.
It is also not known who carried out the attack, and the Oromia government’s blame on an armed alliance called Tsimdo has not been backed by evidence. Addis Standard, citing residents, reported on 28 October that more than 50 people were detained in Shirka, and BBC Amharic, as relayed by Borkena on 29 October, reported more than 20 held; neither count is official.
The federal government has not said whether it will investigate.
More: Africa news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Was Arrested After the Arsi Attack?
Residents say security forces arrested 24 to 27 people in Shirka after the attack of 24 October 2026, including women who came to bury relatives. Church sources say 13 were still held.
Why Were They Arrested?
A church source says they are accused of giving information to the armed attackers, which the church calls false. No charge has been made public and no court has heard a case.
What Has the Ethiopian Government Said?
The federal government has made no public statement on the killings or the arrests. Local officials did not answer calls and messages on 30 October 2026.
Sources: Addis Standard (via allAfrica), 28 October 2026; BBC Amharic report relayed by Borkena, 29 October 2026; Statements by residents of Gobesa and Shirka district and by Ethiopian Orthodox church sources, 25 to 30 October 2026; Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Holy Synod statement on the Arsi killings, 26 October 2026; US State Department, Ethiopia Travel Advisory, 30 October 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error
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