Category: Articles

A terse historical perspective is in order—a perspective that has thus far defined the national ethos of the Nordic community in general. This ethos has its origins in what political theorist Francis Fukuyama termed, “Getting to Denmark.” Such a road is one that ended in Denmark attaining the ideals of Liberal Democracy, after opposing ideas continuously generated growth ultimately ending in the “End of History” i.e. a harmonious society.  

Such idealism, however, was short lived among political theorists as they moved onto the more “realistic” academic concept of the “Clash of Civilizations,” which argues that conflicts over people’s cultural and religious identity would dominate global politics after the Cold War. Despite such a paradigm shift, Denmark’s image as an example of Liberal-Democracy has refused to fade away. 

Denmark has been known for embodying Liberal-Democracy that for so many states is at best a distant ideal to live up to. It is a state where political institutions reach a perfectly calibrated balance through transparency, accountability and rule of law. Such a synchronized orbit is a political feat, which states in the West, including the United States struggle to synchronize. 

Such an ethos was not developed overnight and took centuries to develop emerging from repression of thought; but once it did, it was contagious and spread across the small arms of the North Sea that are the Skagerrak and the Sound to Norway and Sweden respectively. 

It is no coincidence that the Nordic nations have stood out within the last several years at the top of the list in standard of living, quality of life exhibited by the fairly evenly distributed income and wealth within their respective populations. This is the historical backdrop in which the Nobel Foundation is set in Norway. Not peace seen as a platitude in the absence of war, but peace as a “Categorical Imperative”—a thing-in-itself if I could borrow Emmanuel Kant’s terminology. 

In 2019, however, when the five person committee should have understood peace as exalted and sublime, the man they chose to be at the receiving end proved to embody anything but peace. Abiy Ahmed Ali, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, has been an antithesis to what the committee and prize stand for– a man of a psychological make up in sharp contrast to the political history Norway is a product of.

It is rather prudent then to ask the obvious—what exactly went wrong? A hasty decision without rigorous vetting? Were they duped? Or were they fully aware that Abiy was a quack, a charlatan, and a hustler? If the case is the latter, he has proven them right by sending Ethiopia’s National Defense Force in partnership with Eritrea and its armed forces to Tigray, to rape young girls, to kill young men, fathers, mothers, to loot, desecrate religious centers including churches and mosques, and to vandalize hospitals, factories, schools, and academic institutions.

Rape went on unabated, the killing went on in full swing, the destruction persisted with a passionate zeal, in the meantime the Nobel Peace Committee has opted for silence—a silence not indicative of remorse but a silence draped in an eerie indifference. What has unleashed on Tigray is not only the tragic stain on the reputation of the Nobel Peace Committee, but what Abiy is doing goes against what Norway and Scandinavia are known for: he has destroyed any idea or notion of a state in which political institutions perfectly orbit with transparency, accountability and rule of law. 

History, rightly so, recognized Norway when it refused to collaborate with the Nazis in the late 1930s, as the country remained true to its pacifist philosophy. In the here and now though, how will Tigrayans and posterity remember Norway? This is a serious moral question. Would Abiy be emboldened to commit all the atrocities in Tigray if he hadn’t been awarded the Peace Prize that he has used as cover to unleash his “Law and Order Enforcement” operation? 
Generation of Tigrayans will wrestle with the moral question, so will a handful of Norwegians—I believe. But there is a chance for generations of Tigrayans to remember Norway and the Nobel Peace Committee in good light if the latter were to have the moral courage to do the right thing. To resign not now or tomorrow but to resign yesterday!

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration continues to deny the ongoing genocide, weaponized rape, systematic killings, and the deliberate denial of basic needs that have occured since November 2020. Such denial, which is characteristic of perpetrators of genocide, as well as the complete blackout imposed on Tigray has made it nearly impossible to accurately report the impact of the genocidal war and the true severity humanitarian crisis in Tigray. His efforts to cover-up the atrocities in Tigray have exacerbated the suffering of Tigrayans. 

Since the war began, the Ethiopian government has restricted the use of the internet and cut off telephone services, mainly to prevent communication with and within Tigray. Such a blackout has prevented the international community from fully understanding the extent of the crimes being committed in Tigray and acting to stop atrocities and prevent more from taking place.

To make the situation worse, throughout the war the Ethiopian government has denied humanitarian agencies access to Tigray, hindering the distribution of much needed food and emergency assistance. Since June 28, 2021, the blockade has worsened and remaining food stocks ran out, as Tigray has been under siege. As a result, there have been 150 famine related deaths in August, and over 900,000 people in Tigray are facing fatal famine conditions. In addition, the Prime Minister has gone to great lengths to obscure the truth and facts from humanitarian agencies as he prevents aid, focusing on the fact that security is a “priority that cannot be compromised.” The Ethiopian government has continued to restrict access to ground and air aid routes as a tool of genocide.

Even with deliberate efforts by the Ethiopian government, in collaboration with the Eritrean government, to commit and deny war crimes and crimes against humanity since the war began, the world is slowly coming to realize the brutal reality in Tigray. 

However, efforts to cover-up atrocities in Tigray have worked in delaying the international community’s response to the crimes being committed in Tigray. For instance, the Abiy administration’s lack of acknowledgment of rape as a weapon of war in Tigray has impacted the work of United Nations (UN) offices on the ground. Country office UN officials have “downplayed some instances of reports of rape as sensationalized ‘media hype’,” by suggesting there was a lack of evidence to support numerous sexual violence claims, even with substantial evidence provided. The UN’s decision making is clearly constrained by the Ethiopian government, and as such its response has been based on the Ethiopian government’s persistent downplay of the crisis. 

Abiy’s administration is fully committed to making sure their war crimes go unnoticed by the local and international community. Abiy has gone as far as censoring journalists that may report on the crimes committed in Tigray. Tigrayan journalists, activists, and translators have endured various attacks, abuses, killings, and kidnapping with no status updates on their well-being or whereabouts. In Mekelle, Tigrayan AFP journalists Fitsum Berhane, Financial Times journalist Alula Akalu, and BBC journalist Girmay Gebru, were all detained without disclosed cause. 

According to Amnesty International, several journalists and media workers have been arrested with no form of due process. On June 30, “police arrested 11 journalists and media workers from Awlo Media and Ethio Forum,” who had been reporting on human rights violations and current political situations on their YouTube channel. 

By restricting access to Tigray and arresting prominent local journalists, Abiy has been able to cover-up the atrocities in Tigray. These arrests without disclosed cause attest to the fact that they were deliberately targeted because of their reporting on a genocidal war waged in the dark. 

Accountability and Justice 

Regardless of the amount of evidence, news press, and reports presented by numerous human rights organizations and international officials, there have not been any comprehensive independent investigations or any progress towards seeking justice for Tigrayan civilians who have endured countless atrocities, war crimes, and human rights violations. 

The neglect and cover-up of crimes by Abiy’s administration, along with the United Nations’ inability to take any consequential action in response to the atrocities being committed in Tigray,  are delaying accountability and justice for Tigrayans. It is merely impossible to move towards peace and reconciliation without a path towards accountability and justice. 

International intervention must take place to stop any investigation that might be led by the Ethiopian Attorney General, Federal Police, or Ethiopian government, who are implicitly responsible for crimes against humanity in Tigray. By allowing the Ethiopian Attorney General and Federal Police to lead any investigation, perpetrators of acts of genocide would be investigating their own crimes and would be sure to cover them up. 

The UN Security Council must work in conjunction with other international institutions and human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International to organize and lead an impartial international inquiry on the crimes committed in Tigray. To apprehend any perpetrator responsible for crimes against humanity, war crimes, and/or acts of genocide, an unbiased, independent investigation needs to occur.

Hate speech, dehumanizing metaphors, and outright calls for the eradication of Tigrayans have contributed to the genocide and widespread ethnic cleansing of Tigrayans throughout Ethiopia. “To catch the fish, you must drain the sea,” is an example of a widely known phrase used by Ethiopian state-sponsored media against Tigrayans. Consistent dehumanization of a group of people, especially by government officials who are trusted and in the position to protect their citizens, can be a catalyst in making people feel justified in their violent hate and actions towards that group of people.

In December 2020, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated, 

“Genocide never fails to shock the world when it occurs. But it is never committed without clear, multiple warning signs. The victims are often early targets of hate speech, discrimination and violence. […] Hate speech is a clear warning sign, and we need to do better in rejecting it in all its forms. This includes ensuring that technology companies and social media platforms play their part. Religious leaders and civil society also have a key role in prevention. Governments need to guarantee civic space for human rights institutions and defenders to do their essential work, and they need to protect the rights of those at risk.”

As expressed by Secretary-General Guterres, religious leaders have a responsibility to prevent genocide. Alarmingly, religious leaders in Ethiopia have played a role in disseminating hate speech against Tigrayans, as seen in this video where Tigrayans are slyly referred to as “hyenas” who must be “baptized with fire.” Religious institutions have allowed and enabled the demonization of Tigrayans in their televised church services, using religion as a tool for hate speech and propaganda. Some Ethiopian religious leaders refuse to support peaceful negotiations that could end the Tigray genocide.

Despite the deliberate targeting of Tigray’s religious heritage and sacred places of worship throughout the genocide, Ethiopian religious leaders who have spoken out against the atrocities are close to none. In May 2021, the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Abune Mathias, condemned the Ethiopian government’s genocidal actions against Tigrayans for the first time after being silenced by the genocidal regime for months. After his comments, the patriarch was put on what is described as “unofficial house-arrest.”

Hate towards Tigrayans has a long history and was widespread before the beginning of the genocidal war in November 2020. In a 1996 interview with Professor Tilahun Yilma, who frequently expressed his desire for the separation of Tigrinya-speaking people from Ethiopia, Tigrayans are blatantly described as “a malignant cancer that has been eating away at [Ethiopia’s] vital parts.” The professor then openly calls for the forcible removal of Tigrayans, stating, “If we don’t excise this cancer promptly, Ethiopia will cease to be a nation.”

This genocidal rhetoric has been echoed through media such as ESAT, an Ethiopian satellite news network headquartered in Washington, D.C., now sponsored by the current Ethiopian government. ESAT has been a consistent actor in spreading hate speech against the people of Tigray since its inception in 2010. This article from 2017 details ESAT’s provocation of ethnic hatred and acts of violence towards Tigrayans. A petition was created to take action against ESAT, whose journalist Mesay Mekonnen stated it is necessary to “drain the sea” to “catch the fish,” referring to Tigrayans as the “sea” and Tigrayan leadership as the “fish.” Other state-sponsored media and political analysts such as Seyoum Teshome have constantly used hate speech and genocidal rhetoric to call for the extermination of Tigrayans in Ethiopia.

Such rhetoric has only increased since the start of the genocidal war in November 2020 and especially since June 2021 when the Tigray Defense Forces shifted the military dynamics. The United States has warned of dehumanizing rhetoric used by Ethiopian leadership, who have described Tigrayans as “cancers” and “weeds.” Dehumanizing metaphors, such as referring to a minority ethnic group as a disease or invasive species, can lead others to develop hostile feelings towards that group of people and see them as “less human.”

After enough exposure and belief in the dehumanizing language, people will feel a sense of justification in any violent or hateful act they take towards the dehumanized group. Such dangerous language is eerily reminiscent of the Rwandan genocide and the Holocaust, where millions of people were subjected to the deadly outcome of dehumanizing rhetoric and hate speech — genocide. Hate speech must be taken seriously, especially when disseminated by official state actors obligated to protect their citizens. In June 2021, a European Union special envoy revealed that Ethiopian leaders vowed to “wipe out the Tigrayans for 100 years,” a clear indication of the Ethiopian government’s intentions.

In addition to inciteful hate speech, efforts from the Ethiopian government, state-sponsored media, and other actors have deliberately characterized Tigrayans as a danger to society. For example, in a deleted tweet, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education called for the imprisonment of Dr. Tedros Adhanom, Director-General of the World Health Organization. This disturbing demand raises concern, as the mass arrest, disappearance, and ethnic profiling of Tigrayans, including children under 3 years of age, have been widespread across Ethiopia since the beginning of the genocide. In a deleted tweet from the official Twitter account of the African Union, a staff member compared Tigrayan leadership to the Taliban, while insisting that negotiations with said leaders are impossible. Mockery of the weaponized sexual violence happening in Tigray must also be taken seriously, as exemplified by the job termination of a Lyft driver after his inappropriate comments. Further degradation of Tigrayans occurred in a recent meeting with Congresswoman Karen Bass, where Ethiopian filmmaker Theodros Teshome made several villainizing blanket-statement implications that Tigrayans are inherently treacherous, insinuating that they are responsible for wrongdoings in Ethiopia’s history.

The Ethiopian government, state-sponsored media, religious institutions, social influencers, and ordinary citizens have participated in hate speech and genocidal rhetoric against Tigrayans. A recent investigation on the ill use of Facebook in developing countries revealed that groups associated with the Ethiopian government and state media incited violence against Tigrayans by using dehumanizing terms like “hyenas” and “a cancer” to describe the ethnic minority group. Viral Facebook posts accusing Tigrayans of crimes have been sweeping the internet, accompanied by comments insisting Tigrayans should be wiped out.

Tigrayans in Ethiopia and the diaspora have been targeted by hate speech, gaslighting, and the denial of atrocities despite the mounting evidence. Tigrayan children, whether infants or young adults, are often referred to as “junta orphans” and “terrorists.” Additionally, allies who advocate to end the man-made famine and violence in Tigray are not excluded from such harassment. It is imperative that spewers of hate speech and genocidal rhetoric at all levels, from government officials to TikTok users, be held accountable to mitigate any violent consequences of their words.

In its Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech, the UN commits to monitoring and addressing hate speech, as well as implementing ways to support victims of hate speech. The UN must uphold its responsibility in preventing genocide and protecting Tigrayans from hate speech and genocidal rhetoric. Simon Adams, executive director of the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, has condemned the widespread hate speech from Ethiopian leaders: “The references to people as weeds that need to be removed, or as monsters that must be erased, is classic hate speech. And calling for the total extermination of any political party and its supporters is tantamount to incitement to commit war crimes and other atrocities.”

Right before Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed waged war on Tigray, my mother had found a weatherbeaten, heavily creased, brown album while cleaning our basement. The pages half torn, the gold embellishments faded—a true testament of its neglect and old age. It had been with resignation that my father had accepted that the pictures he collected from his early childhood and his time in Sudan were lost forever; so one can only imagine our complete shock when we opened the album to find those pictures fully intact. Pictures of a young man with an easy grin, a whisper of a mustache, and a head full of unruly curls.

“He looks just like you,” my mother marveled. As we slowly flipped through the album pages, we saw photographs of my young father dancing, sitting encircled by his friends feeding him gursha, and standing under the scorching hot Khartoum sun.

When my father arrived from work that day, he sat in disbelief as we showed him the pictures he thought were lost forever. Excitedly, he pointed to his friends, calling out their names, and elaborately gesturing, finally bringing to life the stories of his youth. Stories we had never heard before.

At the very end of the album, we came across a picture of him when he was 16 years old—an image that bore the most likeness to me. It was like staring into a mirror. His eyes welled with tears, the remnants of his youth resurfacing, struck with the sudden realization that the boy that stared back at him was long gone.

When the Derg regime, a military dictatorship, took over the Ethiopian government in 1974, my father’s childhood was cut short. The Derg launched a brutal military offensive against innocent Tigrayan civilians, plunging the region into a famine that claimed the lives of one million Tigrayans. Like many other youths in Tigray, my father was forced to grow up quickly. He made the heart-wrenching decision to leave his family behind and cross the border into Sudan in hopes that he would be safe from the clutches of the Derg.

Today in Tigray, history is repeating itself; however, the acts of barbarism that Eritrean and Ethiopian forces and militias have committed since November are unprecedented, wreaking havoc in the entire region. On numerous occasions, Abiy and Eritrea’s dictator Isaias Afwerki have denied the crimes they have committed and continue to commit in Tigray. Nonetheless, there is no doubt that this time around, genocide is being executed at their command. Scores of Ethiopian and Eritrean civilians have utilized the rhetoric of Abiy and Isaias to bolster their argument that the genocide is indeed a hoax. The sheer confidence and self-righteous attitude that numerous Eritreans and Ethiopians harbor in support of the totalitarian regimes in Eritrea and Ethiopia leave me dumbfounded. How can one stand by governments that continue to commit heinous crimes with mounting evidence that the international community has confirmed?

Since the start of the genocidal war, I have often looked back to my father’s worn-out album to gain some semblance of understanding as to what he endured during the Derg era. I found consolation in seeing him happy despite his dire circumstances but felt angered that he was robbed of his youth. Robbed of his dreams and opportunities. The most heartbreaking reality is that Tigrayans are reliving a very similar experience to my father’s today. With each turn of the album pages, I became more aware of the suffering of my people and my Tigrayan identity.

Growing up, I was quite naive about the history of Ethiopia. I only knew stories of gallant soldiers warding off Italian forces, and Ethiopia being one of the few African countries to defeat colonial rule successfully. I was proud to be Ethiopian —and I viewed the flag as a token of honor, representing centuries of rich history and diverse peoples. It was only when I started college as a history major and conducted research that I came across a side of Ethiopian history I had never even heard of—a side more nefarious in nature and rampant with slavery, genocide, and absolute monarchism.

The Oromos, who consist of the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, were subject to centuries of enslavement, discrimination, and extrajudicial killing at the hands of Emperor Menelik II. Further, I was intrigued by the origins of the 1943 Woyane rebellion, a peasant-led revolt that resisted the autocratic rule of Emperor Haile Selassie. The emperor swiftly responded by enlisting the help of the British Air Force to conduct aerial bombardments in Tigray—killing thousands. These long-buried truths leaped out of the pages of the books I read, epitomizing how marginalized groups always stood in the periphery of historical retellings. These marginalized histories that countered the narratives of the Ethiopian empire instilled in me an insatiable appetite to seek justice for those who had been sidelined.

Tigray has always been persecuted by the greater Ethiopian state—a state that has now enacted a genocide against its own people. When Abiy waged a genocidal war on Tigray in November 2020, I promptly removed the Ethiopian flag from all my social media platforms. I felt no loyalty to a flag representing a country preparing to repeat its violent history of attacking Tigrayans. My eyes were forever changed as they became revolted at the flurry of red, green, and yellow. I knew my association with Ethiopia would never be the same again.

To my surprise, many Ethiopians have supported the war on Tigray, even after witnessing the atrocities caused by the war: foreign invasion, destruction of Tigrayan infrastructure, man-made famine, weaponized rape, and massacres across Tigray. What Ethiopians fail to realize when they shout, “We are one Ethiopia,” is that the Ethiopia they know would not exist without Tigray’s history and contribution. The deafening silence of those whom Tigrayans once called brothers and sisters has killed the concept of “One Ethiopia.”

My father’s album serves as a living reminder that in spite of the many trials and tribulations the Tigrayan people encounter, they continue to be the face of resilience. I know one day Tigray will be free from her oppressors and I will be comforted with the notion that I never doubted Tigray.

Disclaimer: All views expressed in this article, or other articles posted at Omna Tigray, do not represent the official position of Omna Tigray.

“Cruelty that parallels Auschwitz,” are the words used by Kibrom Berhe of National Congress of Great Tigray (Baytona Party) to describe the concentration camp-like conditions of detained Tigrayans in Ethiopia. Kibrom Berhe is one of the thousands of Tigrayans who have been targeted and systematically arrested in a wave of mass arrests since the genocidal war on Tigray began in November 2020. This genocidal war, falsely characterized by the Ethiopian federal government as a “law enforcement operation” against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), has paradoxically led to the wrongful arrest of several TPLF opposition leaders such as Kibrom Berhe, Dori Asgedom of Assimba Democratic Party, and Hailu Kebede of Salsay Woyane Tigray. The mass arrest of Tigrayans should ring international bells of concern, as arbitrary arrest and detention fall under the United Nations Commission of Experts definition of coercive practices used to commit ethnic cleansing and genocide.

Since November 2020, there have been numerous reports of ethnic profiling and arrests of an estimated tens of thousands of Tigrayans throughout Ethiopia, including children under 3 years of age. Military personnel reportedly call the Tigrayan detainees “cancers” and threaten to shoot them if they make any effort to escape. The Ethiopian federal government has made attempts to justify these arrests; in a leaked video verified by the Associated Press, a senior Ethiopian military official said of Tigrayans, “We had to clean out our insides. […] Even if there may be good people among them, we can’t differentiate the good from the bad. To save the country, we made it so they were excluded from doing work.”

Tigrayan members of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and police forces have been ordered to hand over all government property and firearms; current and former federal soldiers with varying seniority have undergone “shocking” treatment and abuses. One soldier detained with 90 other Tigrayans in a warehouse was able to escape to a neighboring country, but he remains fearful for the lives of those left behind. Reports indicate that more than 17,000 Tigrayan members of the Ethiopian military have been detained and face torture and execution. According to an internal United Nations (UN) account, Tigrayan security forces deployed in UN and African peacekeeping missions may also face torture or execution. In reference to the Ethiopian security forces after the mass arrests of Tigrayans, ENDF Brigadier General Tesfaye Ayalew said the security forces are now “completely Ethiopian.”

Several human rights organizations have reported on the arrests, abuses, and ethnic profiling of Tigrayans in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, since the genocidal war began. In July 2021, Amnesty International made a statement “urging the Ethiopian government to end this wave of arbitrary arrests.” In August 2021, Human Rights Watch published an article detailing the abuses against Tigrayans in Addis Ababa. Tigrayans throughout the capital have experienced assault and detainment due to alleged suspicion of supporting, or being associated with, the TPLF. Authorities in Addis Ababa have illegally searched Tigrayan homes and shut down numerous Tigrayan-owned businesses; establishments playing music in the Tigrigna language have also been targeted. A recent video of an Ethiopian federal soldier assaulting a young Tigrayan for not speaking Amharic has surfaced.  As a result, Tigrayans are apprehensive about being reprimanded or even killed for speaking  their native tongue.

In addition to the ethnic profiling and mass arrests, the whereabouts of forcibly disappeared Tigrayans remain unknown. Some of these forcibly disappeared people include journalists who have gone missing or have been killed in connection to their reporting on the genocidal war in Tigray, as documented by the Committee to Protect Journalists. The Ethiopian federal government has violated Article One of the United Nations’ International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which states, “No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification for enforced disappearance.” Forcibly disappeared, missing Tigrayans are highly vulnerable and likely subjected to torture and living in excruciating circumstances. Additionally, these situations cause agonizing stress to the families of forcibly disappeared persons. Some Tigrayans have seen shocking footage of their missing family members in posts and broadcasts from state-sponsored and affiliated media, leaving them with sentiments of confusion and horror.

According to Amnesty International’s Director for East and Southern Africa, “Ethiopian authorities must reveal the whereabouts of detainees to their families and lawyers. Not disclosing the fate or whereabouts of detainees is committing the crime of enforced disappearance. Authorities must also ensure that all detainees are protected against torture and other ill-treatment.”

Ethnic cleansing and genocidal acts in the form of mass arrest and forcible disappearance of Tigrayans in Ethiopia since November 2020 violate the international rules and standards of arrest. The immediate and unconditional release of all wrongfully detained Tigrayans is essential in mitigating the hostilities towards Tigrayans in Ethiopia. Human rights abuses and arbitrary arrests of Tigrayans by federal security forces and pro-government militias must end, and those whose whereabouts remain unknown must be accounted for.

In her Breakfast Club Interview on the genocidal war on Tigray, Millete Birhanemaskel discerningly observed, “every genocide has a signature, and this one is sexual violence.” These words ring truer by the day as more accounts of the weaponized Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) against the women and men of Tigray by Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Amhara forces continue to emerge. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) revealed that at least 22,500 Tigrayan women and girls would seek medical care for SGBV before the end of the year. Given the stigma surrounding SGBV and the near-complete destruction of health services in Tigray, we know this is likely a very conservative estimate. Nevertheless, more reports are coming out that shed light on the magnitude of the crisis. The latest, from Amnesty International, details horrific atrocities that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Consistent with previous reports from the UN and Red Cross, the Amnesty report underscores the appalling brutality of these attacks. Numerous reports have additionally emphasized that SGBV has been utilized as a weapon of war to terrorize, humiliate, and destroy Tigrayan society. 

As more horrific details slowly trickle out of Tigray, which has been under a complete communication black-out, many on the Ethiopian government’s side have cast doubt or taken to openly attacking those that call attention to these atrocities. 

Samuel Getachew, an Ethiopian journalist, was among the first to deny and undermine the validity of the stories of Tigrayan survivors, stating that “even before, the region [Tigray] has been known for being unfriendly to women.” While Samuel himself is widely criticized for this abrogation of duty, this talking point has been amplified by those who want to justify and disregard the suffering of Tigrayan women and girls. The most dangerous adoption of this position comes from  Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration, despite mounting evidence and international humanitarian recognition of the violences committed. From Ethiopia’s Attorney General, Gedion Timothewos, advising everyone to take survivors’ accounts “with a grain of salt,” to Ethiopia’s ambassador to the United States explicitly declaring that survivors’ testimonies are “not true” —the entire government apparatus has mobilized to silence survivors. 

This coordinated attack from the pro-government camp is especially egregious, as it misrepresents and weaponizes the activism of Tigrayan women to justify and downplay the widespread SGBV committed by the invading forces. It suggests, erroneously, that the presence of movements for gender equality in Tigray is proof that gender relations in pre-war Tigray were worse than elsewhere in the country or comparable to the atrocities inflicted since November 2020. 

It is vital to note that this line of argument does not come from genuine concern for the lives and safety of women in Tigray. If it did, its proponents would, first and foremost, be concerned about the verified reports of rape, gang rape, and sexual slavery that health professionals, humanitarian organizations, and international media outlets have reported. Most accounts concur that the weaponized SGBV in Tigray has been among the most atrocious in contemporary history. The United Nations (UN) has declared that SGBV has been utilized as a weapon of war, while doctors who treated survivors have labelled it genocidal rape. The numbers, as staggering as they are, do not convey the full magnitude of the damage. Tigrayan women and girls were kidnapped and held in sexual slavery for days or even weeks. Survivors report brutal gang-rapes by as many as 30 soldiers, and being forced to choose between rape or death. Assaults were often carried out in full view of survivors’ families. Tigrayan men were forced with the threat of physical violence, pain, or  death to rape their own family members. Perpetrators also explicitly conveyed their genocidal intention, telling survivors that they had come to cleanse their blood lines. Recent reports indicate that Tigrayan boys and men have also been targeted in these attacks. Altogether, these accounts confirm that SGBV was systematic and deliberate, designed to terrorize, humiliate, and dismantle Tigrayan society. While even a casual perusal of published reports indicates the sheer brutality, cruelty, and sadism of the weaponized SGBV against Tigrayans, it is vital to remember that what has been reported is likely only the tip of the iceberg. 

It is this industrial-scale, genocidal, weaponized SGBV that government supporters want to downplay by pointing to the purported prevalence of SGBV in Tigray prior to the war. The fact is that nothing—not in Tigray, not in Ethiopia, not in the world—to the extent and degree of what has been reported during the war on Tigray has been recorded in recent history. The genocide apologists provide not one shred of evidence to substantiate their claim of any culture in Tigray that is more ‘unfriendly’ to women than any other part of Ethiopia. Ethiopia, in general, can be characterized as ‘unfriendly’ to women, with its high rates of SGBV, Female Genital Cutting (FGC), and partner abuse. 

A 2006 report by BBC identified Ethiopian women as the most abused in the world. However, there is little evidence to suggest that this was a uniquely frequent or especially pervasive problem in Tigray in particular. Rather, those who wish to dismiss the suffering of women and girls in Tigray point to the presence of strong, grassroots organizations that were fighting for women’s rights and equality in Tigray as evidence of this supposed ‘unfriendly’ culture. For example, the admirable and ground-breaking work of feminist organizations in Tigray, like Yikuno, is weaponized by genocide apologists to dismiss reports of weaponized SGBV in Tigray. The presence of grassroots movements that dared to challenge the patriarchal structures that affect women in Tigray and all across Ethiopia, is not proof of a uniquely hostile culture in Tigray. The only thing it proves is the presence of young women with the courage, capacity, and tenacity to fight for a more just and equal society. 

While this obfuscation by the pro-government camp is disappointing, it is not surprising. What is shocking, however, is the absolute silence of the self-proclaimed feminists of Ethiopia. Not one of the several prominent feminist organizations in Ethiopia has publicly released an unequivocal condemnation of weaponized rape, called for justice for the women and girls of Tigray, or defended the work of feminist organizations in Tigray. The silence of Ethiopian feminists – both as organizations and individuals – on the weaponized SGBV in Tigray and the consequent weaponization of the work of feminist organizations in Tigray is a monumental betrayal of the central tenets of feminism. The belief in the social, political, and economic equality of all genders, the foundation of contemporary feminism, requires recognition of women’s full humanity, right to life, and security. The very humanity of Tigray’s women and girls has been violated by the actions of the Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Amhara forces who have carried out unspeakable acts of rape, gang-rape, sexual slavery, and sexual mutilation. 

A Tigrayan survivor who was gang-raped told Amnesty, “They raped me one after the other…I don’t know if they realized I was pregnant. I don’t know if they realized I was a person,” showing how systematic the attempt to dehumanize the women and girls of Tigray was. Yet, when these egregious attacks took place, not a word was heard from Ethiopian feminists—not even from those organizations that profess to work to raise awareness about sexual assault such as #MeTooEthiopia or Setaweet. Having conversations about gender equality, while ignoring the over 22,500 Ethiopian citizens in Tigray who are grappling with the physical and psychological aftermath of weaponized rape in a context of a decimated health infrastructure, is farcical. 

Not only have these organizations not spoken up, advocated, or applied pressure to confront these attacks against women and girls in Tigray, they have made no efforts to combat the dangerous weaponization of feminist organizations work to downplay weaponized SGBV in Tigray. The silence of Ethiopian feminists on the attacks against Yikuno and other grassroots organizations is doubly disappointing, given that they are supposed to be engaged in the same struggle. The women of Tigray, through Yikuno and other organizations, were engaged in the noble project of improving gender relations, similar to other feminist groups in Ethiopia. They organized to protect themselves, defend one another, and assert their right to live free as equal members of society. Yikuno and similar organizations in Tigray were part of a global feminist struggle to create a safer world for women. A struggle Ethiopian feminists profess to be a part of. A struggle that deserves praise. Instead, the Abiy regime, its supporters, and sycophants—deeply rooted in a logic of patriarchy and sexism—choose to vilify this work to justify their use of women’s bodies as battlefields in their genocidal war. 

The same strand of violent patriarchy and moral bankruptcy that set the stage for weaponized SGBV in Tigray is also at work in the pro-government camp’s ongoing efforts to weaponize the work of organizations like Yikuno. That this toxic patriarchal messaging of the pro-government camp has not been condemned by the self-proclaimed feminists of Ethiopia reveals yet another layer of societal failure and disregard for women’s lives. The dangerous rhetoric that has been utilized by the pro-government side is not only intended to downplay and legitimize the inhumane action we are seeing from Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Amhara militia forces, but also serves to reinforce patriarchal structures that intimidate women from organizing to challenge injustice. To those sharp enough to read between the lines, this is a warning to all women of Ethiopia: if you dare to organize to challenge injustice or demand equal rights, the time may come when we will weaponize these efforts to justify the atrocities we commit or enable others to commit against you. 

This should be a spine-chilling warning to all feminist organizations. How might they all react if the widespread protests against Hanna Lalango’s brutal gang-rape and murder was held up as proof of Addis Ababa’s “rape culture” and used to justify the rape of tens of thousands of Addis Ababa’s women and girls? How loud would their cries be if the social media campaign against heightened sexual violence during Covid-19 was weaponized to justify gang-rapes in the streets of Piassa, Arat Kilo, and Cherkos? How angry might they get, if organizations like #MeTooEthiopia and Setaweet were held up as proof of Addis Ababa’s “unfriendliness” to women amid industrial-level weaponized rape in the city? 

In a moral society, one need not invoke such extreme hypotheticals to draw fellow citizens’ empathy, solidarity, and support. Alas, with each passing day, the ties that bind Ethiopian society today seem looser and less concrete, having been woven out of imperial tales and patriarchy. There is something fundamentally wrong with a society that at all levels, from its ambassadors and Attorney General to its journalists and feminists, rushes to downplay, legitimize or even tacitly support abhorrent SGBV against girls as young as 4.

What we are seeing from the pro-government camp’s misrepresentation and weaponization of Yikuno and other feminist organizations in Tigray – partially enabled by the disappointing silence of Ethiopian feminists – is an effort to invalidate the feminist struggle and silence women. It is not enough for the genocidal forces of Abiy Ahmed and Eritrea’s dictator Isaias Afewerki to inflict weaponized SGBV against Tigrayan society; their propagandists also want to tell the women and girls of Tigray that this is their natural condition, that there is nothing extraordinary about the excruciating trauma they have endured for months, that they should be quiet about their unimaginable suffering. It is, therefore, our responsibility as feminists, women, and human beings to stand behind this uncontroversial declaration: Women and Men must be protected from weaponized Sexual and Gender Based Violence without exception, equivocation, or qualification. 

It is also incumbent upon us to extend our unreserved support to the extraordinarily brave women and girls of Tigray who had the courage to challenge injustice before the war, who continued to do so while living under the daily horror of occupation, and are doing so today while living under siege. A society which can not make these affirmations—such as present-day Ethiopia—is a society which harbours nothing but disdain and disregard for women. It is Tigrayan women today who are bearing the brunt of this genocidal disdain, but it could be every other woman in Ethiopia tomorrow. 

The year 2020 is going to be remembered as one of the most troubling years in the world’s history. A time when the world united to fight against an emergent coronavirus (Covid-19) that caused a pandemic, in which an estimated 194 million people were infected and 4.2 million were killed globally. In addition to the lives lost, virus containment efforts have led to the separation of families and communities, affecting the mental health of the world’s population.

Until November 4, 2020, this would have been how most remembered the year 2020, but for Tigrayans in the northernmost region of Ethiopia, it is a year that would come to be remembered as the start of a genocidal war against them. The genocidal war against Tigray is a full-blown war waged by Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) and its allies: the Eritrean Defense Forces (EDF) and other regional special forces and militias. Ten months into the ongoing armed conflict, ethnic cleansing, war crimes, massacres, and mass killings, have been reported. A man-made famine has ensued and sexual violence has been used as weapons of war against civilians.

Tigray Before the War

Tigray regional state is the northernmost regional state of the 10 regional states and two chartered cities that make up the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Tigray is home to an estimated 7 million people with rich history in ancient civilizations, such as the Kingdom of D’mt and the Kingdom of Axum, which are home to multiple archaeological sites that are protected as world heritage sites by UNESCO. In addition to Tigrayans’  rich history in ancient civilizations is their long history of struggle for self-rule, self-determination and freedom: from fighting against Italian colonizers in the early 1900s to spearheading the war against the Derg regime (military dictatorship) of Ethiopia, which led to its defeat in 1991 after 17 years of civil war.

Following the fall of the Derg regime, the people of Tigray in collaboration with Ethiopia’s other major nations and nationalities established a federal system that embodied a multinational state with the right to self-determination for nationalities. They formed a front in the name of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). During the last three decades under the EPRDF prior to its dismantling, Ethiopia’s image changed dramatically as it became one of the fastest growing economies in Africa, with an economy growing 8 to 10 percent yearly. As reported by the World Bank, Ethiopia was poised to become a middle-income country by 2025. Millions were pulled out of poverty, and significant improvements to the healthcare system were made. Between 2000 and 2011 poverty substantially decreased from 44% to 30%. Healthcare facilities, hospitals and local clinics opened throughout the country, and Ethiopia witnessed increased life expectancy, reduced child and infant mortality and significant achievements in the overall health of the country.

Covid-19 in Tigray and in Ethiopia

Ethiopia reported its first Covid-19 case on March 13, 2020, eventually leading the country to declare a Covid-19 State of Emergency on April 8, 2020. Prior to that, the Tigray regional government declared a region-wide state of emergency on March 26, 2020 which included restricting travel within the region, enforcing wearing a mask, and banning large gatherings in market places, religious institutions, cafes and restaurants to prevent the spread of the virus. Travelers entering Tigray were required to report to the nearest health office for monitoring. The pandemic was also given extensive media coverage throughout Tigray by government media agencies such as Tigray TV and Dimtsi Woyane Radio and TV, as well as private Radio stations such as FM Mekelle 104.4 radio. The regional government was working with all parts of society to inform and educate the people.

According to UNICEF, as of November 30, 2020, Ethiopia had 110,074 confirmed cases with 1,636,729 samples tested since the first positive case reported in the country. With consideration to the limited access to testing sites in some areas and suspension of reports from Tigray after November, 4, 2020, due to the war, the distribution of the cases were reported as follows: 58,457 cases in Addis Ababa, 18,509 cases in Oromia, 6,662 cases in Tigray, 6,383 cases in Amhara, 4,084 cases in Southern Nations Nationalities and People region, 3,412 cases in Sidama, 2,863 cases in Diredawa, 2,727 cases in Harari, 2,496 cases in Benshangul Gumuz, 1,810 cases in Afar, 1,610 cases in Somali, and 1,001 cases in Gambela.

The Covid-19 Pandemic Delays Federal Elections and Intensifies Tension

The tension between the Ethiopian federal government and the Tigray regional government started soon after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018 and deteriorated further during the Covid-19 pandemic. 
Ethiopia was to hold its 6th national election in August 2020. With rising political tensions in the country at that time, Abiy used the pandemic as an excuse to postpone the national election. Opposition groups and parties opposed Abiy’s decision to postpone the elections. They accused Abiy of using the pandemic to extend his term in office and to weaken his opponents. They  suggested having a transitional government if elections were to be postponed. The Ethiopian parliament rejected these legitimate concerns and approved the postponement of the election and for Abiy to stay in office beyond his term limit.

The Tigray regional government opposed the decision of the rubber stamp parliament as unconstitutional, and conducted their regional election. The federal government dismissed the regional election as ‘null and void’ and decided to suspend the federal budget for Tigray as punishment. This escalated the crisis and eventually led to the war on Tigray, which Abiy waged, in collaboration with Eritrea’s dictator Isaias Afework, on November 4, 2020.

Although Abiy’s administration was preparing to attack Tigray for months prior to November 4, Abiy’s administration accused the Tigray regional government of attacking the federal northern military base to justify the war on Tigray. Though Eritrea’s involvement in the war was initially denied by higher Ethiopian and Eritrean officials, Abiy later admitted that Eritrean troops had crossed the border into Tigray. The Ethiopian and Eritrean armies with the help of Amhara militias have been working hand-in-hand in committing widespread atrocities, human rights violations, and blocking humanitarian aid from entering Tigray.

Healthcare Failure in Tigray during the War

As a result of the genocidal war on Tigray, the region has experienced a humanitarian crisis with severe public health consequences. About 5.2 million people are in dire need of humanitarian aid, more than 2 million people are internally displaced, and over 900,000 people are living in famine conditions. Besides looting private Tigrayan properties and homes, killing livestocks, and burning sacks of grains, Ethiopian and Eritrean troops have looted and destroyed hospitals and clinics throughout Tigray. They burned and soiled patient medical records, and approximately 80% of the healthcare facilities are not operational. People are unable to get basic healthcare services and are suffering from previously preventable and treatable communicable diseases such as malaria and cholera.

Most people who managed to flee the war zones have sought refuge in larger towns and cities, in informal sites such as schools, universities, and community centers, while others have been forced to hide in bushes and caves. These people have been deprived of humanitarian assistance and proper medical care since the war started. Patients with chronic diseases such as HIV, TB, and diabetes have not received any medications for months. In addition to diseases commonly observed in overcrowded areas, like cholera and other waterborne diseases, respiratory tract infections are very prevalent. 

With the ongoing war and humanitarian crisis in Tigray, there are no federal or regional efforts to help track or stop the spread of Covid-19 in Tigray. As the Ethiopian federal government is conducting a siege on Tigray, there is limited access to clean water, sufficient food, sanitation and hygiene in most areas, and social distancing is difficult to maintain due to the chaos that the conflict has caused and existing living arrangements in the region.

Due to the total destruction of the healthcare system of the Tigray region and the disruption of the Covid-19 response, the incidence and mortality rates of the virus are unclear. Although the Ethiopian government claimed that it distributed vaccines in Tigray before it was forced to retreat from the region in June 2021, it is difficult to verify due to the lack of data and the tele-communication blackout that has persisted throughout Tigray during the last 10 months.

When Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared war on Tigray in November 2020, the people and government of Tigray were caught by surprise. The unexpectedly gruesome war turned their lives into hell on earth in a matter of weeks. 

The government of Tigray had been at odds with the Ethiopian federal government as early as 2018, and ethnically targeted measures against Tigrayans were underway far before the start of the war. However, no one could have predicted that the very government meant to protect the national security of the country and the safety of its people would instead launch such a brutal and barbaric war against its people with assistance from a foreign country.

As if the weaponry and human resources of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) would not suffice in their war on the people of Tigray, the ENDF had to form a genocidal alliance with the Eritrean Defence forces (EDF) and Amhara regional special forces. Their task was total destruction: to kill as many Tigrayans as possible and loot and destroy Tigray’s public and private properties in a short period of time. Thus, a great number of troops encircled Tigray supported by helicopter gunships, artillery, and aerial bombardments. Within a few days, they created an inferno and killed tens of thousands of innocent civilians. To make matters worse, the war was declared exactly at the time of harvest when farmers were preparing to earn the results of their hard work throughout the farming season.

The whole of Tigray was being suffocated under a telecommunication blackout and encircled by invading forces partaking in wholescale destruction. The Tigray government, mainly represented by the TPLF, was aware of the impending threat against Tigray. The government tried to prepare itself as much as it could  to defend against any potential threat. However, the power imbalance and lack of time for adequate preparation left the Tigrayan government and Tigrayan special forces with no option but to retreat outside of the capital city, Mekelle, in a bid to save as many of its members as possible. In their retreat, the Tigray forces reorganized themselves to combat the invading genocidal forces effectively.

The Emergence of the Tigray Defence Forces (TDF)

As the genocidal intentions of the invading forces became evident in the widespread destruction and massacres committed against Tigrayan civilians, the Tigray Defense Force emerged (TDF) as an army of the people. In addition to Tigray’s trained forces, all who were able to join did — from high school to college students, professors, business owners, and survivors of the violence — as they were left with no other choice. They had to defend their people and region from the indiscriminate killings and criminal intentions of ethnic cleansing by the Abiy Ethiopian regime, Amhara expansionists, and Eritrea’s dictator Isaias Afwerki.

Tigrayan youth have been vital to the ultimate strength and fortitude of the TDF. They joined the TDF in droves, understanding the dire situation Tigray and its people faced. Though no one was spared from the brutal killings unleashed by the invading forces, the youth were their key targets in an effort to undermine and eliminate resistance. Had it not been for the youth’s swift understanding of this threat, as well as the knowledge of experienced senior Tigrayan fighters who had been generals in the ENDF and TPLF, the region would have been left without a valiant resistance to the genocidal forces.

At the time of its establishment, the TDF possessed only rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, and the like. They had no mechanized units, missiles, artillery, or rockets, as United Arab Emirates drones destroyed all heavy machinery they had captured from the northern command in the early days of the war. Despite such early losses, the TDF was able to regroup, driven by the morale of the fighters and the unwavering support of the people of Tigray. The people’s main worry was losing the chance of tilling the farmlands, so they requested that the TDF aim to finish the war in Tigray by June. The people have been doing everything they can to support the fight for the survival of Tigray. A vast majority of Tigrayans inside and outside the country have joined the fight, making the struggle a popular resistance against all aggressors.

The pace of the TDF’s recovery, its restructuring, and its capacity to hit back against multiple enemies of formidable size and weapon arsenal was mind boggling, incredibly heroic, but also demonstrated a great deal of military discipline compared to their Prisoners of War (POWs) and their opposition.

TDF’s Continued Fight to Push out Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Amhara Forces from Tigray

Within weeks, the TDF drove out the ENDF, EDF, and Amhara special forces and militia from most of Tigray, including the entire Southern region of Tigray annexed by Amhara expansionists at the beginning of the genocidal war. However, much of Western Tigray is still under the control of Amhara forces supported by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. 

The TDF has not stopped at its southern borders. It has continued to chase the ENDF and Amhara militia further into the Amhara and Afar regions. Although Abiy’s government declared a unilateral ceasefire, allegedly on humanitarian grounds and to help Tigrayan farmers till their land during the rainy seasons, the TDF and the government of Tigray recognized the ceasefire for what it was—a change in tactics as they were losing the war on the ground. 

The same Ethiopian government that destroyed Tigrayan farmers’ fields right before harvest, killed or looted their oxen essential for land tilling and cultivation, and prohibited them from cultivating their fields did not call for a ceasefire for the sake of the farmers. Stating as much is laughable and disrespectful towards the people of Tigray. Thus, to secure a future for their people, the TDF has taken the war beyond Tigray’s borders.

Abiy’s “Ceasefire” to Buy Time for Another Offensive 

Certainly, Abiy’s declaration of a ceasefire with a distorted message of humanitarian concern,  despite the actual defeat of his forces, was not intended to alleviate the suffering in Tigray. Nor did the prime minister aim to convince the international community, as they certainly have their own means of verifying the facts. The ceasefire was a message directed to his base mainly in Addis Ababa and his supporters in the diaspora, who are fuelled by his divisive and inflammatory propaganda. In their eyes, Abiy is the savior, the messiah, who can transform Ethiopia and bring about prosperity, had it not been for the permanent disturbances the TPLF created to hinder his good intentions. 

There was plenty of evidence to suggest that Abiy’s declaration of a ceasefire was just that, a declaration, words. As he pretended to care about the humanitarian crisis,  he made sure to seal all supply lines towards Tigray, freeze all bank activities, and shut down power and telecom lines. In other words, he just changed his strategy of genocide from a military offensive targetting civilians on the ground in massacres and other violent crimes to a silent and even more gruesome style of genocide inflicting a slow and painful death on Tigrayans through starvation. Had he been given any breathing room, he would have reorganized his forces and returned  to continue his military-led wholesale destruction, but this time with more vigour and cruelty in response to his humiliating defeat.

The TDF and its leaders were aware of Abiy’s fallacious actions and his hidden intentions. Thus, they rejected his fake ceasefire outright and put forth their own terms for a mutual ceasefire. Their terms were simple: restore basic services that have been shut off since the start of the war, stop the mass arrest and ethnic profiling of Tigrayans, and retreat from Tigrayan lands. However, since there was no clear and direct response to their ceasefire proposal, the TDF has continued its offensive against the ENDF and Amhara forces, thereby making substantial progress in diminishing their combat capacity.

TDF’s Discipline 

Of all the progress the TDF has made, most remarkable are the TDF’s ethics, discipline, humanity, and fighting spirit. Considering  the vast majority of the fighters have lost family members during this war and that some have witnessed their family and friends being executed or brutally sexually assaulted, the way the TDF treats POWs is admirable. 

The TDF’s wartime ethics and morality was exhibited when they captured towns in the Amhara and Afar regions. They made it clear to local residents that they do not harbor any resentments and thus would not interfere in their day-to-day lives. The only thing civilians had to do was keep the peace, stay safe, and leave their arms at home. 

In contrast to all members of the genocidal coalition, who looted, killed, and raped in Tigray, the TDF has proven to be highly ethical and disciplined, thus successfully mobilizing the people peacefully inside and outside their regional territory. 

Given the drastic imbalance in the number of fighters and forces the TDF has been up against,  the consecutive military victories the TDF has scored is a remarkable accomplishment short of a miracle that could have historic implications for the Ethiopian state and the wider Horn of Africa. 

The essence of the TDF‘s victories and its ethical code is grounded in its mission of fighting for the people. TDF fighters are left with no choice but to fight for their survival and that of their people. How long the fight will take is yet to be determined, but in the end, there is no doubt that the popular resistance of the people of Tigray led by the TDF will prevail.