Isaac Ibrahim, a Gharri and a member of the Ethiopian parliament from the Somali region, told Sora of the Afan Oromo service that the ethnic conflict of the past month between the Borana and the Gharri people has subsided in southern Oromiya, but tensions remain.
Isaac said he has information that in the Ley, Gofa and Arero area three Gharri were killed and one wounded, while some residents who have been displaced have not returned home. Others have started returning home, believing that reconciliation has been occurring between the warring groups. There are also unconfirmed reports of Borana raids in other towns near the border town of Moyale in recent weeks.
The service also interviewed Mesfin Abebe who is in charge of conflict resolution in the Oromiya administration and works with federal conflict resolution office.Mesfin said he has visited cities like Elgofa but has not confirmed the number of recent deaths and their ethnicity.
The Afan Oromo service first reported attacks by armed Gharri in mid-March when residents of Dhasi district reported that a new water system had been attacked and destroyed. Several deaths were reported at that time.
Isaac, who represents a district in the Somali region, said the federal government needs to work closely with community leader from both sides to bring people together and let them discuss their issues and reach a peaceful resolution of those issues.
