Maqi, East Shagar – 6 June 2025
A young man has reportedly been taken from a prison cell and executed by soldiers loyal to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government in Maqi town, East Shagar, according to local sources cited by Oromia National Media–Arrata Biyyoolessa Oromiyaa (ONM-ABO).
The victim, identified as Fayisa Haji Leenco, was detained on accusations of supporting the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA). Despite the lack of evidence or formal charges, he was allegedly removed from detention and shot last week. Residents of Maqi told ONM that Fayisa had no known political involvement and had been targeted purely on suspicion.
The killing is the latest in what Oromo rights advocates describe as a growing campaign of repression across the Oromia region, where government forces under the ruling Prosperity Party (PP), have intensified crackdowns on youth and community members viewed as sympathetic to the Oromo liberation struggle.
ONM-ABO characterised the incident as part of a broader pattern of political violence carried out by what it calls a “dictatorial regime” that continues to “mobilize its troops day and night to shed the blood of the Oromo people.”
Eyewitnesses and residents report that young people in cities across Oromia are being subjected to arbitrary arrests, abductions, torture, and extrajudicial killings by security forces seeking to quash dissent and stifle growing grassroots support for the OLA.
No official response has been issued by the federal government or East Shagar authorities regarding the killing of Fayisa Haji Leenco. Human rights observers and Oromo civil society groups are calling for independent investigations and accountability for what they say are widespread abuses carried out with impunity.
