Ethiopia: On 2nd anniversary of conflict, Amnesty campaign to highlight gravity of human rights crisis

Ahead of the two-year anniversary of northern Ethiopia’s ongoing armed conflict, which broke out on 3 November 2020 and has since led to appalling violations by parties on all sides, Flavia Mwangovya, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for campaigns East Africa, Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes regions, said:

“Since the start of the conflict in northern Ethiopia, millions of civilians have been displaced and thousands killed. All parties have been responsible for serious violations, encompassing war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extrajudicial executions and summary killings of thousands of people and sexual violence against women and girls.

“The international community must show solidarity with the victims and survivors of atrocity crimes in Ethiopia’s two-year conflict. Despite restrictions on access and communication shutdowns, Amnesty has repeatedly documented unspeakable abuses by all parties to the conflict, yet the response from the international community, including the African Union, has been dismal.”

“On the second anniversary of the start of the conflict, Amnesty International will launch a global campaign to underscore the gravity on the human rights crisis in Ethiopia, while also detailing how the African Union and the international community have offered a completely inadequate response to one of the deadliest conflicts in the world.”

Background

All parties to the armed conflict in Ethiopia, which pits forces aligned with Ethiopia’s federal government, including the Eritrean army, against those affiliated with Tigray’s regional government led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), have committed serious human rights violations and abuses, including extrajudicial executions, summary killings and sexual violence against women and girls. The abuses we documented in this conflict include war crimes and crimes against humanity, which are among the most serious crimes of concern to the international community. Ethnic violence has claimed thousands of lives.

Due to the ongoing conflict, the region has been largely cut off from the outside world. Millions of people have been internally displaced, while humanitarian aid has also been denied to millions of people in Tigray.

Source: Amnesty International