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Ethiopia: “Islamic extremism has been growing,” and now churches are being burned down all over the country

Sep 19, 2019 4:00 pm By Robert Spencer

Coincidence? Maybe. But “Islamic extremism has been growing in Ethiopia and has been a concern for many analysts in the region. Money from the Gulf region has been pouring into the country building mosques, [Islamic] schools, and introducing the Wahabi form of Islam to Ethiopian Muslims since the early 2000s.”

What is likely to happen when a community that believes that Christianity is a false religion and that they are commanded to fight unbelievers so that Allah may punish them by the hands of the believers (cf. Qur’an 9:14-15) comes into significant money?

“Uptick in church burnings raises alarm in Ethiopia,” by James Jeffrey, GlobalPost, September 16, 2019:

Churches belonging to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) are being burned to the ground throughout Ethiopia — one of the world’s most religious countries, where about 98% of Ethiopians claim a religious affiliation. Church members have also reportedly been killed while trying to protect their churches.

These incidents of arson and murder come at a time when tensions between the country’s ethnic groups — including Oromo, Amhara and Tigrayan — are already high. Since the end of 2015, Oromo people have protested against land encroachment by the government, while the Amhara people have protested over regional integrity threats by their Tigrayan neighbors.

The government and EOTC leaders met recently in a series of hurried meetings to discuss the uptick in threats to the EOTC in the face of huge protests planned in the capital, Addis Ababa, on Sept. 15, 2019, to speak out against the attacks. Authorities did not permit demonstrations in the capital but protesters turned out in massive numbers in Gondar, and other cities.

Since July 2018, about 30 churches have been attacked, mainly in eastern and southern Ethiopia, with more than half of them burned to the ground, according to the Amhara Professional Union (APU), a United States-based diaspora organization that has attempted to track events.

In August 2018, an estimated 10 churches were burned in Ethiopia’s eastern Somali region, resulting in 29 deaths, including of 8 priests. This March and April, another two churches were attacked in the Somali region’s capital, Jijiga, resulting in 12 deaths.

In July, five churches were attacked with three torched in the southern Sidama zone — killing three people.

“There have been at least 15 churches that were attacked, three of which were completely burned down,” says Nathan Johnson, Africa regional manager for International Christian Concern, a US-based nongovernmental organization that monitors human rights of Christians and religious minorities around the world. “I have only confirmed two cases in which priests have been killed in Ethiopia this year. It is likely that this number is higher, though, as there are major tensions in the country.”

The attacks, occurring across a wide geographic spread, have gone largely under-investigated and under-reported, leaving some church members to feel that the Ethiopian government has turned a blind eye to the uptick in church attacks over the last year….

“Ethiopia cannot afford a religious conflict at a time when its very survival is [already in] question,” says Tewodrose Tirfe, with the Amhara Association of America, another United States-based organization representing the diaspora’s Amhara ethnic group….

…attacks on Christians have occurred regularly since the 1990s, with a spate of attacks in 2011 — hence concerns that the increase in church burnings since 2018, especially those that occurred in the predominantly Muslim Somali region — could indicate the influence of Islamic extremism.

“Islamic extremism has been growing in Ethiopia and has been a concern for many analysts in the region,” Tirfe says. “Money from the Gulf region has been pouring into the country building mosques, [Islamic] schools, and introducing the Wahabi form of Islam to Ethiopian Muslims since the early 2000s.”

Wahhabism, a more strict and conservative Islamic doctrine and religious movement, backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, has made inroads in Ethiopia and the wider Horn of Africa region in the past few years.

But others note it’s important not to overemphasize the potential influence of Islamic extremism in a highly complex situation.

“Orthodox Christian churches were not the only properties targeted, and nor were Orthodox Christians the only groups who suffered,” Davison says. “Instead, government buildings, hotels and other commercial properties have also been attacked, as were numerous ethnicities, and presumably followers of different faiths. The targeting of Orthodox churches may therefore not necessarily reflect a dangerous rise in religious sectarianism.”…

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Filed Under: Ethiopia Tagged With: Addis Ababa, Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC)


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Comments

  1. Me says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 4:04 pm

    You can NOT kill a spirit… It will RETURN. THEY ONLY strength Christianity with persecution.

    • James Pierce says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 6:39 am

      You can destroy the building but you cannot destroy the Church

      • Terry Gain says

        Sep 20, 2019 at 9:45 am

        Muslims can’t destroy Christianity. Pope Francis has occupied the field.

        • Sinnie Kemp says

          Sep 20, 2019 at 1:46 pm

          And Pope Francis is doing nothing he rather appeases tIslam and let Christians persecuted by the Muslims

    • gravenimage says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 8:37 pm

      Muslims have successfully destroyed Christianity in many places, I’m afraid–mostly by killing all the Christians.

  2. The unexpected voice says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 4:06 pm

    What the hell. Even the christian majority Ethiopia has church burned down. What ever. I’d rather die than convert to Islam.

  3. Aussie Infidel says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 4:38 pm

    As sure as night follows day, wherever Islam goes, violence will follow it too. What do they expect from a largely political ideology which commands its followers to murder unbelievers?

  4. Walter Sieruk says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 4:53 pm

    There are many Muslims who strongly dislike Christians. Some Muslims even hate Christians so much that they even become violence against them and burn down their churches ,as in this specific situation in the nation of Ethiopia is very disturbing.

    One reason for this is that in the mosques and madrasas the Muslim clerics, as the imams who speak many awful and unproven terrible things against Christians and Christian doctrine. So much so the many Muslims get all worked up against Christians and Christian teachings and some those Muslims commit violent actions against Christians. Such false religious teachers, as those Muslim clerics, who speak to people unfounded and invalid evil things about Christians and Christian doctrines have been described in the Bible. For the Bible informs the reader in Second Peter 2:12. “They speak evil of things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption.” [N.K.J.V.]

    It also should be make clear that in this specific above Bible verse, as well as in John 3:16. The word “Perish” does not mean loss of being but loss of well-being. As in going to ruin by ending up in languishing in torment in a terrible place of suffering that the Bible calls hell. Luke 16:19-31.

  5. Old Fat Bald Socially Inept Ron says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 5:24 pm

    Everyone!
    Please stop using the terms
    “Extremism” or “Radicalism” or “Wahhabism”.

    ISLAM ….period…no qualifiers.

    ISLAM….as Allah instructed.

    ISLAM….as Muhammad demonstrated.

    If something is described as tolerant, passive or peaceful, it ain’t Islam.

  6. tim gallagher says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 6:33 pm

    Anywhere that Islam is, things always seem to be getting worse and more violent and intolerant. You never seem to hear about countries where Islam is getting milder and more peaceful. To me, it brings to mind that old saying, which I think was used to refer to the war in Vietnam by American soldiers (something I vaguely recall from some book I read), “Hell Sucks”. When it comes to Islam, “Hell Sucks”, things are always getting worse and more violent for non-Muslims who have to try and live amongst Muslims.

    • Michael Copeland says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 12:58 pm

      “You can be full of love and peace but you cannot sleep next to a mad dog.”
      Ashin Wirathu, Buddhist monk leading armed opposition to muslim killers in Myanmar.

      • tim gallagher says

        Sep 20, 2019 at 7:34 pm

        That’s a very good saying, Michael. I am writing it down for future use. I think some of our Christian church leaders need to wake up and get this attitude.

  7. Infidel says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 6:43 pm

    Somebody educate me here – wasn’t Eritrea a Muslim region of Ethiopia that broke away and made Ethiopia landlocked (sorta like India and Pakistan)? Then why does Ethiopia have a Muslim problem?

    • gravenimage says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 12:45 am

      This is true–but Ethiopia is still 33% Muslim, and is still violent. It is actually not that dissimilar to India and Pakistan–ceding land to Muslims does not make them less violent–usually it emboldens them.

      • Prouderitrean says

        Sep 20, 2019 at 3:08 am

        What you guys are saying is not right , I am not gonna to explain the long history of Eritrea which you think was part of Ethiopia.But Eritrea is not a Muslim nation we eritreans are 50% Christians and 50% Muslims, and all live togather in harmony.

        • Keys says

          Sep 20, 2019 at 2:42 pm

          Prouderitrean –

          In 1950, according to the Pew Research Center, Eritrea was 63% Christian and 36% Muslim, and now about 50/50 as you say.

          Do you know the reason for the change ? Some sources say the current government does not allow “radical” religious sects.

          And what is being said here that “is not right” ? The article is about Ethiopia where “muslim extremism” is growing, not Eritrea. The article states facts about attacks on churches and Christians.

          Keys

        • gravenimage says

          Sep 20, 2019 at 8:42 pm

          Prouderitrean wrote:

          But Eritrea is not a Muslim nation we eritreans are 50% Christians and 50% Muslims, and all live togather in harmony.
          …………………….

          Uh…right. What could possibly be more peaceful than the Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement, which is violently trying to impose brutal Shari’ah law there?

  8. NAR says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    Go the hell with your pungent lies you idiots, in the past one year more mosques are burnned or demolished than churches. But we Muslims didn’t yell out saying christians did this and that, because we knew who is behind these idiocy. The remnants of Tplf and a right-wing orthodox group called Mabere kudusan were and are still working hard to derail the change happening in the country, their provocative media releases, preaching, and recent warmongerings are not unnoticed, but we chose a very wise way to calm the situation. Almost all the so called burned churches were actually directly (like those in sidama zone) or indirectly (Jigjiga) were orchestrated by Christians not Muslims. The church and its right-wing evil groups are raising this dust of Jihad blabla just to cover up their failure as a religion and most importantly to keep silent the Oromo movement for the creation of their sinodos. Let’s not forget that the church is at crossroad and those who love the church must do better than those ignorants, don’t listen to them, verify your info source and preach peace. Ethiopia has changed and will keep changing, so please join the change train before if goes far.

    • gravenimage says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 1:08 am

      NAR wrote:

      Go the hell with your pungent lies you idiots, in the past one year more mosques are burnned or demolished than churches.
      …………………………….

      Note that there are a lot of specifics cited in the story above, but NAR does not cite a single statistic in his claim.

      I have actually found reference to two Mosques having been attacked:

      https://www.yenisafak.com/en/world/at-least-2-mosques-torched-in-ethiopia-3473750

      I condemn this, unlike NAR, who refuses to condemn attacks on Churches.

      That he does not consider thirty churches being attacked in the past year to be of concern shows how Muslims think.

      And this is sadly nothing new in Ethiopia. This, from 2011:

      “In Ethiopia, Muslims burn 69 churches”

      http://www.bpnews.net/34859/in-ethiopia-muslims-burn-69-churches

      More:

      But we Muslims didn’t yell out saying christians did this and that, because we knew who is behind these idiocy.
      …………………………….

      Well, this is just laughable, given the prevalence of Muslim victimhood–including fake Muslim victimhood.

      More:

      The remnants of Tplf and a right-wing orthodox group called Mabere kudusan were and are still working hard to derail the change happening in the country, their provocative media releases, preaching, and recent warmongerings are not unnoticed, but we chose a very wise way to calm the situation. Almost all the so called burned churches were actually directly (like those in sidama zone) or indirectly (Jigjiga) were orchestrated by Christians not Muslims.
      …………………………….

      Ah…right. Christians are all burning their own Churches down…sarc/off

      And what change is NAR referring to? One presumes he means violent Muslim surpremacism.

      More:

      The church and its right-wing evil groups are raising this dust of Jihad blabla just to cover up their failure as a religion and most importantly to keep silent the Oromo movement for the creation of their sinodos. Let’s not forget that the church is at crossroad and those who love the church must do better than those ignorants, don’t listen to them, verify your info source and preach peace. Ethiopia has changed and will keep changing, so please join the change train before if goes far.
      …………………………….

      Wait–Christians are ignorant if they take issue with Muslims burning their Churches down? But then, this is how pious Muslims think.

      • Bini says

        Sep 23, 2019 at 8:17 am

        Nar or whatever the fuck his name is is lying. Thank God the whole world know what the political ideology masked as a religion is all about. They do two things. Attack in places where they are a majority or play victims where they are minorities. Nothing new here. If it wasn’t for the christian peace loving ppl in Ethiopia sometimes too dormant to their own detriment, this could be really ugly. I got to say tho lots of the Muslims in the northern part of Ethiopia are very peaceful and have coexisted with the Christians for a very long time. But places in the south and some other places where Muslims have majority enclaves, it has been nothing but terror to christians. Very gruesome and disturbing things have been done. So many burnings and killings on Christians in a christian majority country.

    • mortimer says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 1:39 am

      Hey, NAR, please explain the following:

      https://www.opendoorsusa.org/christian-persecution/world-watch-list/ethiopia/

      On August 4, 2018, a two-day period of violence erupted in which Muslim mobs targeted the Christian minority in Ethiopia’s Somali Region; 15 Orthodox priests were among those killed. Ten Orthodox churches were set ablaze and nine evangelical churches were also vandalized or looted.

      https://www.persecution.org/2019/01/18/bodies-34-ethiopian-christian-isis-victims-found-libya/

      Bodies of 34 Ethiopian Christian ISIS Victims Found in Libya

      01/18/2019 Ethiopia (International Christian Concern) – The bodies of 34 Ethiopian Christians killed by ISIS militants in 2015 have been discovered in a mass grave in Sirte, Libya. Authorities located the mass grave as a result of evidence gathered from detained ISIS members.

    • Angemon says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 12:49 pm

      “Go the hell with your pungent lies you idiots”

      And a good day to you too, good sir.

      “in the past one year more mosques are burnned or demolished than churches.”

      Citation needed.

      “But we Muslims didn’t yell out saying christians did this and that, because we knew who is behind these idiocy.”

      Other muslims? And yes, muslims do blame non-muslims for all sort of things, like Mossad stealing shoes, and that includes made up allegations with the intent to creat murderous riot mobs to go after non-muslims.

      “Almost all the so called burned churches were actually directly (like those in sidama zone) or indirectly (Jigjiga) were orchestrated by Christians not Muslims.”

      “So called”? And citation needed.

      “The church and its right-wing evil groups are raising this dust of Jihad blabla just to cover up their failure as a religion and most importantly to keep silent the Oromo movement for the creation of their sinodos.”

      This and the above allegation from the guy who wrote:

      we Muslims didn’t yell out saying christians did this and that

    • Keys says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 2:52 pm

      Well NAR, gravenimage, mortimer, and Angemon demolished your post with facts and citations.

      Have you got anything rational, factual, or citations in response ?

  9. gravenimage says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 8:50 pm

    Ethiopia: “Islamic extremism has been growing,” and now churches are being burned down all over the country
    …………………..

    And Ethiopia is only 33% Muslim–but it is making an increased assault against Christianity there.

  10. Adam says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 9:43 pm

    With the wolves at the gate, all I see are too many sheep and not enough sheep dogs.

    I see us, the west, as weak and gutless. I wonder then how my enemy see us? Strength attracts and weakness repels. A nation as old as time itself, in the very backyard of the death cult islam for over 1400 years and can’t yet figure out how to defend itself and its children from the savages.

    I pray they find the strength and the nearest US arms dealer.

  11. European pagan says

    Sep 19, 2019 at 10:55 pm

    I work together with an ethiopian man, he is very religious, and he told me Ethiopia has problems because of muslims. I told him, they should make a rule like in China, only for muslims: one husband – one wife – one child. They are always more and more, and they start to burn churches and kill etc. What will come now?

    • gravenimage says

      Sep 20, 2019 at 1:10 am

      Actually, European Pagan, Muslims were specifically exempted from the Chinese One Child Policy.

      • European pagan says

        Sep 20, 2019 at 9:14 am

        I didn’t know that….
        But it would be a very good solution (everywhere!), we would save our countries from islamisation

        • gravenimage says

          Sep 20, 2019 at 9:05 pm

          “What is China’s one-child policy?”

          https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/11197594/What-is-Chinas-one-child-policy.html

          …The policy has been a patchwork of measures. China’s ethnic minorities, such as Uighurs and Tibetans, are exempt.”

          Insanely, Muslims have also been exempt from the ban on knives–despite all the knife Jihad.

          China has certainly appeased Muslims in the past–but does seem to be cracking down on them now.

  12. AP says

    Sep 20, 2019 at 8:09 am

    Muslins burn down churches, and mosques, when they don’t have bombs. Never do you hear of Christians doing the same.

  13. No Muzzies Here says

    Sep 20, 2019 at 9:33 am

    This is unfortunate. Non-Muslim Ethiopians are wonderful people. Islam will destroy what is good in this country.

  14. Shanqella says

    Sep 25, 2019 at 6:29 pm

    Congoloid Rastafarian bigotry towards Muslim “Ethiopians”, especially Muslim Highlanders/Amaras.
    Those Bariyas think that they are literally Ethiopian Highlanders genetically and everything, they think that just because they are Christians/or other Kafirs that makes them more “Ethiopian” or “Ethiopian” Highlander than the Native Muslims, they think that Muslims are a threat to Ethiopia, even though they are not Ethiopians themselves let alone Proper Ethiopian Highlanders.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvXXlAr4w8s&feature=youtu.be

    This is a video of a Bariya Rastafarian, lectureing Muslim Ethiopian Highlanders about their history and deny their oppression, and outright insult them. He act as if he is one of them, when they got nothing to do with them and don’t want anything.

    Black Rastafarians are essentially, trans-racials by definition, they think that they are part of the Northeast African Race, When they are Black Congoid Africans. They hate their Black African root and obsesses over North and Northeast Africans and interfere on their affairs, that they know nothing about.

    Why are Muslim Highlanders so passive and weak and always white knighting and try to reason with Animals?

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