A new preliminary causality report by the Amhara Association of America (AAA) shows thousands of Amhara have been killed and injured by the regime of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali since the declaration of a State of Emergency (SoE) in Amhara on August 4th 2023. The SoE followed an escalating military operation and siege of the Amhara Region by the Abiy Ahmed regime in response to peaceful anti-government protests which erupted in the region in early April 2023. This report documents a pattern of widespread civilian massacres and other human rights violations by the Abiy regime which have hallmarks of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In the six months following the SoE declaration in the Amhara Region (August 4th, 2023, to January 31st, 2024), the AAA has documented patterns of genocidal acts by the Federal Government, Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF), and allied forces, including:
Killing at least 1,606 civilians including women, children, and elderly persons and causing physical injury to an additional 824 civilians;
Conducting 37 drone strikes resulting in 333 civilians killed; primarily targeting marketplaces, clinics, ambulances, schools, and civilian infrastructure. AAA received reports of dozens more drone strikes which are under investigation;
Rape of at least 210 young girls and women;
Mass arrest of over 10,000 ethnic Amharas across Ethiopia; Those detained have faced physical and psychological torture, denial of family visits, inadequate medical attention, and unsanitary conditions;
Imposed telecommunications and internet blackout in the Amhara Region to hinder reporting on ongoing gross human rights violations;
Enforced arbitrary stop-and-search operations and extortionate bribes;
Termination of employment of an unknown number of Amharas, especially within the Addis Ababa city administration, on false accusations of supporting or spying for Fano;
Annexation of at least one district (Awra Godana) from the Amhara Region to the Oromia Region by ENDF and Oromia Region forces; and
Forceful relocation of survivors of the ongoing Amhara Genocide in Oromia out of the Amhara Region.
The report recognizes that the documented atrocities and violations are only a small fraction of the true extent as internet and telecommunications blackout and security challenges hinder investigation efforts including on-site access. But the report shows the widespread pattern of abuses that constitute hallmarks of war crimes, crimes against humanity and an extension of the Amhara genocide that has been happening for decades in Oromia and other regions into Amhara Region.
Western powers has displayed restraint in condemnation of atrocities committed and have continued to finance the Abiy regime through normalized diplomatic relations, loans, direct budgetary support to Abiy regime andmilitary defense cooperation. At a time where Ethiopia is facing a famine inwhich over 400 have died in the past six months, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) awarded Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed theprestigious Agricola Award on January 28th, one day before the devastating massacre in Merawi town. States Like UAE, Turkey, China and allegedly Iran,continue to sell drones and other weapons that have been directly deployedagainst civilians.
Amhara have found this continued support for the Abiy regime perplexing,especially given the intense pressure the same Western powers applied inresponse to alleged violations in Tigray Region during Northern Ethiopia war that affected Amhara, Afar, and Tigray regions between November 2020 -November 2022. AAA thus calls on the international community to reverse course and take immediate action to prevent further casualties in the region caused by the Abiy regime which presents a significant threat to the stability and security of Ethiopia and the wider Horn of Africa region. Nonetheless, acknowledging the structural deficiencies and typical responses from the international community, the Amhara people remain resolute in determiningtheir fate independently, regardless of the level of international support they receive to mitigate the existential threat posed against them and end the Amhara genocide in Ethiopia once and for all. See full report Here.
