Fears of 'fresh atrocities' loom in Tigray as conflict intensifies in Ethiopia

NAIROBI, Kenya - Amnesty International has called upon Ethiopia and Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or the TPLF to protect civilians amid intensifying hostilities in the Tigray region.

The Ethiopian government said last Tuesday its army had captured the major town of Shire in northwestern Tigray, which hosts thousands of forcibly displaced Tigrayans, as well as Alamata and Korem in the south of the region.

The government said that it is trying to minimize civilian casualties by avoiding urban fighting and instructing its forces to follow strict rules of engagement. Reports received by Amnesty International however refute this claim.

According to Muleya Mwananyanda Amnesty International's Director for East and Southern Africa.“Tigrayan civilians are afraid that the widespread abuses, such as unlawful killings, sexual violence, and systematic attacks, that were rampant when the Ethiopian National Defence Forces (ENDF) and its allied forces were in control of these areas from November 2020 to June 2021, might happen again.”

In August and September, multiple air strikes in Mekelle and Adi Daero, killed hundreds of civilians including children. Between 6-12 September 2022, the Eritrean army, which is allied with the ENDF, extrajudicially executed at least 40 people, including Eritrean refugees, in Sheraro town.

“Military and civilian officials must recognize their duty to prevent and prosecute war crimes committed by their forces. Failure to do so implicates them in these crimes. We have already seen in this conflict that impunity for previous atrocities will only embolden security forces to commit more heinous crimes, the war crimes and crimes against humanity Amnesty International has documented should never be allowed to happen again,” said Muleya Mwananyanda.

He further added that “Ethiopian authorities must suspend and remove from active duty all those, including in the Eritrean army and Amhara militia, implicated in human rights violations and war crimes and ensure that they are immediately investigated. Anyone against whom there is sufficient admissible evidence of responsibility for crimes should be prosecuted in fair trials. We all know that promises, short of concrete actions, will not protect civilians. We’ve already seen in this conflict that impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity and ethnic divisions fuel mass atrocities.”

Amnesty International is also calling on Ethiopian authorities to allow unhindered access to Tigray so that impartial and effective humanitarian relief can be delivered. Ethiopian authorities should also allow international, regional, and other human rights mechanisms to conduct independent and credible investigations on past and present atrocities in the northern Ethiopian conflict.

GAROWE ONLINE