Faith Nyasuguta
A new report by the United States-based New Lines Institute provides compelling evidence that Ethiopian forces committed genocidal acts during the Tigray war, which lasted from 2020 to 2022.
The 120-page draft, released on Tuesday, cites multiple credible and independent sources to assert that Ethiopian forces and their allies engaged in “acts constituting the crime of genocide” during the conflict. The authors of the report call for Ethiopia to be brought before the International Court of Justice.
The Tigray war erupted in November 2020 when the regional government’s bid for autonomy prompted a military response from the Ethiopian government. The ensuing conflict, which formally ended in November 2022, resulted in thousands of deaths.
Both the Ethiopian government and Tigrayan forces have been accused of atrocities, including massacres, rape, and arbitrary detentions, though both sides deny responsibility for these abuses.
In a report issued last September, the United Nations highlighted that war crimes and crimes against humanity were still occurring nearly a year after the government and Tigrayan regional forces agreed to end the fighting. The New Lines Institute’s report now asserts there is sufficient evidence that Ethiopian forces violated the Genocide Convention by targeting civilians with mass killings and starvation tactics.
The report indicates that the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), along with the allied Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) and various regional militias, intended to destroy Tigrayans as an ethnic group. It identifies at least four genocidal acts: killing Tigrayans, causing serious bodily or mental harm, deliberately inflicting life conditions calculated to destroy Tigrayans, and imposing measures to prevent births among Tigrayans.
Additionally, the report points to social media posts by certain individuals as constituting public incitement to genocide. Ethiopia has repeatedly denied its forces committed war crimes during the conflict, while Eritrea has dismissed accusations against it as defamatory.
Despite these denials, the New Lines Institute’s report, which took two years to compile and includes input from dozens of legal experts, supports the UN’s findings by stating there is a “reasonable basis to believe” that Ethiopia and Eritrea are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The report concludes by urging the international community to apply pressure on Ethiopia through bilateral relations and to bring the country before the International Court of Justice. The call to action emphasizes the need for accountability and justice for the atrocities committed during the Tigray war.
The New Lines Institute report highlights the importance of international scrutiny and legal action to address the severe human rights violations and alleged genocidal acts that occurred during the conflict. By advocating for Ethiopia’s accountability before the International Court of Justice, the report seeks to ensure that justice is served for the victims of the Tigray war.
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