Ethiopia’s ethnic cleansing: 60,000 killed, more than 100,000 displaced

The Context: Six months ago, on November 4th, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a military offensive in Tigray to lead a campaign against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the northern region’s ruling party that had dominated national politics for decades. In subsequent months, tensions only rose as Tigray’s regional elections were held in September in defiance of the federal government, which had postponed nationwide polls due in August because of the coronavirus pandemic.

What is Happening Right Now : Tens of thousands of refugees flee into neighboring Sudan, describing the horror of intense fighting, including mass killings. As streams of refugees pour into Sudan, tensions mount with Ethiopia, part of whose frontier is disputed. Some 60,000 people have lost their lives and close to 100,000 people are displaced. Ethnic tensions are also exacerbating as Prime Minister Abiy forged a political pact with an outsider, Eritrea, and his reliance on ethnic Amhara militias to help fight his war in Tigray is accelerating Ethiopia’s internal strife. Amhara militias have reportedly taken control of Western Tigray, and leading a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Ethiopians. Thousands of women and girls are being subjected to sexual violence by the Eritrean troops. Many have shed light on the growing violence via Twitter.

In Ethiopia colonialism is not over. Previous Amhara rulers conducted ethnic cleansing in areas of Oromia & the south and resettled Amharas in their lands. Those Amharas are still called "settlers" by the natives. Today, Amharas are repeating that in Western Tigray. https://t.co/r7jWs10xOd

— Gebrekirstos Gebreselassie (@GebrekirstosG) May 18, 2021

https://twitter.com/dagmawiyohann/status/1392357908952674306

“It's crimes against humanity – carried out with the intent of eliminating Tigrayans"

“There is evidence of ethnic cleansing in Western Tigray. It may be classified as genocide,” says @HelenClarkNZ #TigrayCantWait @UNReliefChief https://t.co/a8oSqVNyre

— Health Professionals Network for Tigray (@HPN4Tigray) May 15, 2021