The 2012 Afar region tourist attack was a shooting incident on the night of 17 January 2012 at

Erta Ale Erta Ale (or Ertale or Irta'ale; Amharic: ኤርታሌ) is a continuously active basaltic shield volcano in the Afar Region of northeastern Ethiopia, which is itself part of the wider Afar Triangle (a barren desert region straddling Djibouti, ...

volcano in the

Afar Region The Afar Region (; ; ), formerly known as Region 2, is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in northeastern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Afar people. Its capital is the planned city of Semera, which lies on the paved Awash, Ethiopia, Awash� ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

which killed 5 and injured 3. Four people were kidnapped in the attack.

Bereket Simon Bereket Simon (; born 1960s) is an Ethiopian politician who had served as Minister of Communication Affairs from its establishment in 1995 to 2012. He was affiliated to the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), of whi ...

, the country's communications minister told ''

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

'' the attack was carried out at 5 am on 17 January, by Eritrean-trained groups. Two foreigners, a driver, and a policeman were kidnapped.

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

denied having trained and armed the attackers. It was later revealed that two

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

s, two Hungarians and an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

were killed in the attack. Two Germans and two

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

s were kidnapped. Three people injured: two

Belgians Belgians ( ; ; ) are people identified with the Kingdom of Belgium, a federal state in Western Europe. As Belgium is a multinational state, this connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural rather than ethnic. The majority ...

and a Hungarian. The Germans were released 7 March the same year."Ethiopian rebels release Germans kidnapped in Afar desert
. GlobalPost, 7 March 2012. Retrieved 2013-7-3.
Archived
2013-07-13.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Afar region attack 2012 mass shootings in Africa Austrian people murdered abroad Terrorist incidents in Africa in 2012 Mass murder in 2012 German people murdered abroad Hungarian people murdered abroad Terrorist incidents in Ethiopia in the 2010s Spree shootings in Ethiopia History of the Afar Region Attacks on tourists in Africa Second Afar insurgency January 2012 crimes in Africa 2012 murders in Ethiopia January 2012 in Ethiopia 21st-century mass murder in Ethiopia Military operations of the Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict Kidnappings in Ethiopia Kidnapping in the 2010s

See also

References