ADDIS ABABA, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has extended condolences to families and communities affected by recent armed attacks in the southeastern part of the country's Arsi Zone in the Oromia region.
In a statement issued Friday, the Office of Ethiopian Prime Minister said the recent attacks, including the killing of civilians and destruction of homes and places of worship, were carried out with the clear intention to "inflame ethnic and religious tensions and deepen social divisions" among communities.
Accusing the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA-Shene) insurgents of the attacks, the office emphasized that the situation has been brought under control, and that coordinated security operations are currently underway against those responsible for the attacks.
The statement, however, did not reveal the number of civilian casualties. According to reports, dozens of people were reportedly killed, while civilian homes and places of worship were destroyed during the attacks that lasted for a few days in the Asko locality and surrounding areas of the Arsi Zone.
The rebel group, OLA-Shene, which was previously designated as a terrorist group by the Ethiopian parliament back in May 2021, has been notably active in parts of Ethiopia's Oromia region.
The government stressed that the armed attacks were not isolated incidents, and they "form part of a broader effort to create instability, undermine public security, and disrupt Ethiopia's democratic processes," mainly the peaceful conduct of the East African country's 7th general election that was held on June 1.
"Destructive forces, acting in coordination with foreign actors hostile to Ethiopia's interests and local armed groups, undertook extensive preparations aimed at preventing the election from taking place," the statement read.
It said before and during the electoral period, these groups mobilized their resources in an effort to obstruct citizens' freedom to vote, incite unrest and violence, terrorize communities through attacks, restrict movement through ambushes and road blockades, and target vulnerable civilian sites across the country's capital of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's two largest regional states of Oromia and Amhara, and beyond.
The statement noted that the coordinated campaigns pair physical violence against civilians with information and media operations designed to amplify fear, division, and mistrust. It said intelligence and security measures have significantly disrupted these efforts.
It highlighted that as security forces' timely action thwarted those objectives, the perpetrators, unable to withstand sustained operations, eventually shifted to attacking softer civilian targets.
Meanwhile, Abiy hailed the successful conduct of the general election, as he highlighted that 50,188 of the 52,000 polling stations across the country opened on time and processed voters throughout the election day on June 1, with over 10,438 candidates from 42 political parties contesting for seats in the House of Peoples' Representatives, the lower chamber of the parliament, as well as for various regional councils.
"This was, by every measurable standard, the largest and most administratively sophisticated exercise of democratic participation in Ethiopia's history," the statement read. ■