Reports of carnage at Axum

VERY BAD NEWS: Witnesses recall massacre in Ethiopia city claimed to be home to Ark of Covenant. Survivors of clashes between pro-government forces and militias in the Tigray region describe horrific war scenes; hundreds dead in city of Axum; Eritrea denies involvement (Cara Anna, AP via TOI).

In January I noted reports of fighting in the area. According to these latest reports, it was worse. The London Times cites a witness who says that people rushed to the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion to help the priests protect the artifact that their tradition identifies as the Ark of the Covenant: Ethiopian worshippers risked lives to save Ark of the Covenant from soldiers (Jane Flanagan). The eyewitness believes that some of them were killed doing so.

For background on the Ethiopian Ark and the ancient city of Axum (Aksum), follow the links at the first link in the previous paragraph.

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