Ethiopian government forces in the Amhara region (Getty - Archive)

An article published by the American website The Hill called on the international community to demand an independent investigation into a massacre that occurred in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.

The article written by Mesfin Tegenu, one of the site's opinion writers, explained that this massacre was carried out 3 weeks ago, but the world is moving slowly to deal with the horrific atrocities taking place in Ethiopia.

The writer quoted government human rights officials as acknowledging that Ethiopian government soldiers slaughtered at least 80 civilians in the village of Merawi during the attack that occurred late last January in the northern Amhara region, where the army forces of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s regime suppressed an uprising. They raided homes and threw the bodies of the victims into the street.

Tegeno pointed out that some reports suggest that the number of victims is much higher, and may reach 150, including women, children, and at least one pregnant woman.

Survivors told of the terror

He added that the only thing more terrifying than the number of deaths is the intimidation reported by the survivors, as one of the residents - who lost his brother in the massacre - told the British newspaper The Guardian that the soldiers were brutally “storming homes and breaking doors,” and that he personally knew at least 45 cases. death.

An Orthodox priest, who arrived in Merawi on January 30, shortly after the massacre, said he saw at least 50 bodies scattered along the village's main highway, and that most of them appeared to have been executed by shooting themselves in the head.

Government recognition of the massacre

The writer stated that reliable reports of extrajudicial killings in the Western media forced a board of inquiry affiliated with the Ethiopian government to acknowledge the massacre and open an investigation.

He said that this investigation comes after the American ambassador to Ethiopia, Irvin Masinga, said that the American government is “deeply concerned” about the recent events in Amhara, and called on the government “to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice,” adding that, however, this “horrific massacre” was not noticed. “So far, there has been great interest, both in the American media and from key decision-makers in Washington.

The writer called on the US government and its allies to use their moral and economic influence to force Abiy Ahmed’s regime to end the state of emergency and withdraw its forces from the region.

Warning of sliding into genocide

Tegeno warned that the bloodshed in Merawi heralded Ethiopia's rapid slide into a season of genocide and famine, saying the world could not stand idly by as it did in Rwanda and led to such tragic results. "The time has come for international action," he said.

He continued to say that the growing crisis in the Amhara region represents an opportunity for the administration of President Joe Biden, its Western allies, and relief agencies to fulfill their promises regarding a true partnership in Africa that puts human rights at the forefront.

The writer pointed out that former US President Bill Clinton said that his greatest regret, after eight years in the White House, was his failure to intervene in Rwanda in 1994.

Tegeno explained that Abiy Ahmed’s regime has launched a brutal campaign of repression against civilians in the Amhara region since last spring, during which it used marches to carry out house-to-house raids, destroy churches and other historical monuments, and burn grain stores containing vital food supplies, even after the forces fighting She is leading the uprising in the region alongside the government to put down another rebellion in the Tigray region over the past two years.

Source: Hill