Cease-fire failed to resolve conflict in Ethiopia, say UN experts

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – A year-old cease-fire failed to resolve the conflict in Ethiopia, the UN experts said on Monday, documenting ongoing atrocities, including war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia said in their latest report that they documented wide-ranging atrocities – including mass killings, rape, starvation, destruction of schools and medical facilities, forced displacement, and arbitrary detention – perpetrated by all parties to the conflict since Nov. 3, 2020.

“While the signing of the agreement may have mostly silenced the guns, it has not resolved the conflict in the north of the country, in particular in Tigray, nor has it brought about any comprehensive peace,” Commission Chair Mohamed Chande Othman said in the report.

“The situation in Ethiopia remains extremely grave,” Othman warned and added that the violent confrontations are now at a "near-national scale" with reports of violations in the Amhara region and ongoing atrocities in Tigray.

The commission uncovered ongoing patterns by government forces of arrest, detention, and torture of civilians in Oromia, and Amhara, the report said, and added it is already receiving numerous credible reports of violations against Amhara civilians since the announcement of a state of emergency in August 2023.

"We cannot overstate the gravity of violations perpetrated in Ethiopia by all parties during the recent conflict. Especially concerning is that some of these crimes are ongoing, in particular rape and sexual violence against women and girls by Eritrean forces in Tigray," Commissioner Radhika Coomaraswamy said.

Coomaraswamy added: "The ongoing presence of Eritrean troops in Ethiopia is a clear sign not only of an entrenched policy of impunity but also continued support for and tolerance of such violations by the Federal Government."

She underlined the urgent need for a "credible, inclusive, and meaningful process of truth, justice, reconciliation and healing."

The report noted the Ethiopian government has "failed to effectively prevent or investigate" violations and has instead initiated a "flawed" transitional justice consultation process where victims remain "overlooked."

In Ethiopia, the federal government signed a peace agreement with the Tigray People's Liberation Forces (TPLF) in November 2022. Following the agreement, the administration of the region passed to the TPLF, and the organization was disarmed.