Militants (file photo)

The Ethiopian Government on Monday said an armed attack in Afar regional state, located in the eastern part of the country, has left 16 people dead.

Speaking to media outlets, officials from the Ethiopia National Defence Forces (ENDF) said gunmen equipped with heavy weapons attacked Afambo locality in Afar Regional State over the weekend leaving 16 people dead.

They further said that seven out of the 16 dead were women and children, with several other people injured in the attack, currently being treated in nearby medical facilities.

Xinhua’s efforts to get comments from the regional state and the Ethiopia National Defence (ENDF) officials have so far been unsuccessful.

The statement by the officials didn’t disclose the identity of the armed attackers or any motive for the attack.

However, some areas of the largely pastoral Amhara Regional State have, in recent years, been the scenes of deadly clashes between rival groups over access to grazing lands and water points.

In January, ethnic Afar protesters, blocked the main road connecting landlocked Ethiopia with neighbouring Djibouti, demanding an end to alleged land encroachment and violent attacks from members of the neighbouring ethnic Somali community. (Xinhua/NAN)