18 die in Ethiopia land clashes
News24.com - April 9, 2008
Clashes over grazing and farmland killed 18 people last week near the southern Ethiopian town of Wondo-Genet, said police.
A police commander said the fighting on April 03 pitted members of the Gugi Oromo and Sidama clans, some 260km south of the capital, Addis Ababa.
"Clashes between the two clans have been brought under control and the government is investigating their cause," Demsash Hailu, public relations head of the Federal Police, said late on Tuesday.
Fighting between the two clans in the region, which was known for its hot springs and lush forests, flared up sporadically.
They normally centred on disputes over land used for grazing and for growing khat, a narcotic plant that was one of Ethiopia's main exports and chewed across east Africa and the Middle East. Read More.