OMNA TIGRAY – AUGUST 2021 SITUATION REPORT

On June 28, 2021, nearly eight months after the declaration of war on the region and people of Tigray, the military and political dynamics on the ground changed dramatically. The Tigray Defense Forces (TDF) took over control of Mekelle and many other parts of Tigray on June 28, 2021, after the retreat of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF). The next day, Eritrean Defense Forces retreated from many parts of Tigray they were controlling, including Shire, Mai-sebri, and Korarit in Western Tigray. The Ethiopian government claimed that the retreat of ENDF forces was pursuant to a unilateral, humanitarian ceasefire declared hours after its troops vacated Mekelle. However, numerous sources on the ground concur that the TDF’s successful battleground counteroffensive preceded the retreat of the ENDF and its allies, including Eritrean and Amhara forces. Journalists and humanitarian workers have shared that the liberation of large parts of Tigray, including its capital city Mekelle, was met with jubilation and celebration on the streets.

Despite this welcome development, the situation remains dire as Tigray is still under siege. Since November 4, 2020, the Ethiopian, Eritrean and Amhara forces have carried out atrocities that amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts of genocide. There are verified reports of countless massacres and extrajudicial executions, extensive weaponization of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), a displacement crisis affecting millions, and a man-made famine that threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands in Tigray, some of whom have already begun to starve to death.

Despite its declaration of a unilateral ceasefire, ostensibly on humanitarian grounds, the Abiy administration continues to block humanitarian convoys from going into Tigray, cutting off communication, transportation, and utilities —thereby aggravating the humanitarian catastrophe in Tigray. The food stock that humanitarian organizations have is severely depleted, and with the transportation of aid into Tigray prohibited by the Ethiopian government, the starvation crisis is set to reach its worst stage yet, endangering the lives of hundreds of thousands who are under siege. As the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell stated, a meaningful ceasefire means “doing everything possible so that aid reaches the millions of children, women and men who urgently need it” ^[1]Joseph Borrell Fontelles [ @JosepBorrellF]. (2021, July 2). A cease fire doesn’t mean cutting a region off power or destroying critical infrastructure. A credible cease fire means doing everything … Continue reading.

While continuing to besiege Tigray by cutting off critical services and mobilizing troops to the region’s borders, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration and its allies have also ramped up the ethnically motivated verbal, physical, and existential attacks against Tigrayans throughout the country. Thousands of Tigrayans are arbitrarily arrested, detained, and face a new wave of ethnic targeting across Ethiopia, including in Addis Ababa, the Amhara region, and the Somali region. Ordinary Tigrayans across the country are increasingly under attack from the government as well as fellow citizens. The federal government and Abiy himself have fueled this flame of ethnic hatred, accusing all Tigrayans of being enemies of the ENDF and traitors to the country. In a July 18 statement, Abiy described the enemy as the “cancer of Ethiopia” and vowed to remove what he labelled an “invasive weed.” Similar to the derogatory use of the term “junta” to describe Tigrayans, words like “cancer” and “weed” serve to criminalize and demonize all Tigrayans, regardless of their political affiliation.

In a July 25, 2021, television address, the President of the Amhara regional government, Mr. Agegnehu Teshager, escalated the dehumanizing and inflammatory language against Tigrayans by declaring that the people of Tigray
are the enemy of all Ethiopians, including the Amhara, Oromo, Afar, and Somali peoples, after asserting that they will not rest until this enemy is eliminated. Labelling over 7 million Tigrayans as “cancer,” “invasive weed,” or “enemies of
the people of Ethiopia” and calling for their elimination is an explicit announcement of the genocidal intention that has fueled the war on Tigray. Unless those who use their power to espouse this dangerous genocidal rhetoric are held accountable for leading and fueling ethnically motivated attacks, the situation for the millions of Tigrayans will become even more life-threatening.