Ethiopia fights displace 23 000
2006-06-16 19:18
Addis Ababa - Fighting between rival clans over a land dispute has driven more than 23 000 people from their homes in southern Ethiopia and left them in need of food, aid groups said on Friday.
The fighting between the Guji and Borena tribesmen erupted late last month, sparked when land formerly belonging to Borenas was awarded to Gujis.
"Regional authorities have reported that overall more than 23 000 people have been displaced after the inter-clan clashes over the past 15 days in the south of Ethiopia," Liz Lucas of the international aid group Oxfam told AFP.
"Elders, traditional leaders, and local government officials are meeting to settle the conflict.
Oxfam is also working with local partners on peace-building in the area," she added, speaking in the capital Addis Ababa.
Aid officials earlier this week reported that 150 people had died in fighting between the tribesmen in a region between Yabello and Finchewa, about 400km south of the capital.