Addis Abeba– An attack by armed members of the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) on 10 December 2024, in the Sululta District, North Shewa Zone of Oromia Region, resulted in the deaths of Sululta District Police Chief Commander Legesse Seyoum and one other individual.
The attack, which occurred in an area known as Erob Gebeya, also left two people injured and two others reportedly abducted, according to a statement from the district’s communication office.
According to local media reports, one of the injured individuals was Sisay Beshada, the head of the Prosperity Party Office in the district, who was taken to Chancho Hospital for medical treatment.
The district communication office stated that the security officials targeted in the attack “were participating in community discussions to implement a recent peace agreement signed between the government and the former Central Zone commander of the OLA, Sagni Nagasa .”
Efforts by Addis Standard to reach the North Shewa Zone Police Command and district officials for comment were unsuccessful.
However, in a statement the same evening, the OLA claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that the operation “neutralized a patrol vehicle, eliminated Commander Legesse Seyoum and his security detail, and injured Sisay Beshada, a Prosperity Party official,” adding that the remaining crew members were captured.
The attack comes shortly after the Oromia Regional Government reported that members of the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) had begun “entering designated camps” following a peace agreement signed on Sunday with a splinter faction of the group led by former Central Zone commander Sagni Nagasa .
This incident is part of a series of targeted assassinations of officials in the Oromia Region amid an ongoing six-year conflict between the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) and government forces.
On 1 November 2024, more than 45 individuals, including Nigussie Koru, the administrator of Wacale District in Oromia’s North Shewa Zone, were killed by armed assailants.
On 20 June 2023, Bekele Kacha, the administrator of the Saden Sodo District in the Southwest Shewa Zone, was shot by an unidentified armed group.
Earlier, on 8 June 2023, Abdissa Keneni, deputy administrator of the Ada Barga District in the West Shewa Zone, was killed by armed men near his house in Bekate town.
In March 2023, Desalegn Bokonja, head of the ruling Prosperity Party (PP) office in the East Wollega Zone in Western Oromia, was shot dead outside his residence in Nekemte city in what the communication office described as “an attack by unknown assailants.”
This militarized conflict has caused significant loss of civilian life, alleged human rights abuses, and widespread disruption to civilian communities throughout the region. AS
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