Ethiopia: the testimony of new arrivals from Tigray to the Sudanese border
Audio 01:19
A young girl from Tigray facing the Umm Rakouba refugee camp, which hosts people who fled the Ethiopian region, in Qadarif in eastern Sudan, December 14, 2020. AP - Nariman El-Mofty
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
Communications have been reestablished in the capital of Tigray, Mekele, and several other towns in the region.
But many areas are still cut off from the world, alarm international organizations.
The visit of Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok this Sunday to Addis Ababa was cut short without explanation.
An unnecessary mediation for the Ethiopian government, which maintains that the events in Tigray are an internal affair.
Nearly 50,000 people have fled in recent weeks to neighboring Sudan.
Refugees continue to cross the border but their numbers have declined.
They tell of the many obstacles encountered on the roads.
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With our special envoy to the etiophian border,
Eliott Brachet
Under a blazing sun, about fifteen men made their way through the brush.
To get to Sudan, they took a new, more dangerous road that goes through Eritrea.
Abraham Beyere, came from Shiraro on foot.
A two-week journey.
“
When I passed the town of Shire,” he
says, “
I was stopped by soldiers from the Eritrean army.
They stripped me, they even took my belt and my shoes.
Then ended up letting me go.
"
Abraham assures us that Eritrean soldiers were present in Tigray.
For her part, Asmara denies any involvement in the conflict.
For Abraham, the pitfalls multiplied on the road.
The fear of the Amharas militiamen
“
Five days ago, I ran into militiamen, the Fanno,”
he continues.
They tied me up with my hands behind my back.
They kept me prisoner for two days.
I then crossed the river, thinking of arriving in Sudan but I had set foot in Eritrea.
I took a roundabout path because I had to hide from the Amhara militias who are everywhere and are chasing the Tigrayans.
"
It is impossible to accurately verify this information since Tigray is still locked by the Ethiopian authorities.
Addis Ababa ensures that the fighting has ceased, but the testimonies of the last refugees all indicate the opposite.
►
To listen: Peter Maurer (ICRC): In Tigray, "we can imagine that there were slippages on all sides"
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Peter Maurer (ICRC): In Tigray, "we can imagine that there were slippages on all sides"
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