In the joint report "We will wipe you out of this country", the two human rights organizations say that it is about war crimes and crimes against humanity that have been going on for a long time, without the Ethiopian government having intervened. 

"Since November 2020, Amharic officials and security forces have been involved in a relentless campaign of ethnic cleansing in order to drive West Tigrays away from their homes," said Kenneth Roth, head of Human Rights Watch.

In several coordinated campaigns, tens of thousands of women, children and the elderly are said to have been driven from their homes.

The men have been imprisoned and those who tried to escape must have been shot.

Survived massacres

Survivors tell of an occasion on January 17, 2021 when 60 people were lined up by a river and shot at close range. 

- I only fell when they shot and I also saw others who were hit.

Those behind me fell on me and protected me, says a 74-year-old man who survived the massacre, according to the report.

For over a year, Amnesty and Human Rights Watch have been interviewing witnesses and gathering evidence of abuse.

A 27-year-old woman from Tigray says she was threatened and ridiculed when she was raped by several men.

- You are evil and we purify your blood, a militia is said to have said during the rape.

Famine after blockade

The war in the Tigray region began on November 3, 2020 and all parties involved have been accused of abuse.

The Ethiopian government has been criticized by the outside world for blocking emergency aid to Tigray for a long time, which has created a major famine.

"Ethiopian authorities have persistently denied the appalling scale of the crimes committed and blatantly failed to deal with them," said Kenneth Roth, head of Human Rights Watch.

On March 24 this year, the Ethiopian government declared a "humanitarian ceasefire" and explained the decision that help should be available to those affected by famine.