Situation in Tigray (per 06 October)

  • Sources on the ground report that an airstrike has hit the town of Shire in northwestern Tigray this morning (6 October 2022). The number of casualties is not yet known.
  • The Tigray External Affairs Office has issued a statement saying that the government of Tigray has accepted the peace talks invitation by the African Union (AU).
  • In the statement, the government of Tigray has requested clarification on who have been invited  as participants, observers and guarantors, plus clarification of the roles that the AU envisaged for the international community.
  • The Tigray regional government has also requested an explanation on logistics and security arrangements for the negotiating team from Tigray.
  • Furthermore, the government of Tigray asks the AU Chairperson, Moussa Faki, if cessation of hostilities is part of the main agenda.
  • The Tigray government was not consulted prior to the issuance of the invitation to the peace negotiations, says the letter signed by Debretsion Gebremichael (PhD), President of Tigray regional State.
  • The Associated Press (AP) cites an as-yet unpublished study stating that babies in the Tigray region are dying in their first month of life at 4 times the pre-war rate (pre November 2020).
  • According to the study shared to AP News, women are dying during pregnancy or within 42 days of giving birth at 5 times the pre-war rate and children under 5 are dying at twice the pre-war rate, often due to easily preventable reasons.
  • Ayder Comprehensive Specialised Hospital in Mekelle says more than 90 patients with kidney failure have died since June 2021 due to lack of access to dialysis supplies.
  • The hospital said 25 patients are currently urgently waiting for dialysis equipment.
  • Reuters says the school hit by a drone strike in Adi Daero, northwestern Tigray, on 4 October was on a list of sites sheltering displaced people that the United Nations sent to the Ethiopian government in January 2022.

Regional Situation (per 06 October)

  • According to Addis Standard, William Ruto, Kenyan President, has arrived in Addis Ababa to meet with Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed. They are expected to discuss bilateral, regional and global issues.

International Situation (per 06 October)

  • Josep Borrell, High Representative and Vice-President of the European Union, said the European Union will present a resolution to the United Nations Human Rights Council to renew the mandate of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE).
  • The European Parliament adopted a resolution on the human rights situation in Tigray.
  • The resolution calls for immediate cessation of hostilities, safe and unfettered humanitarian access, and the establishment of a ceasefire monitoring mechanism.
  • It reiterates its support for the ongoing African Union-led peace mediation and calls for all regional players to exit the conflict, particularly Eritrea.
  • The resolution “condemns the Eritrean forces’ invasion of Tigray.” It condemns human rights violations and war crimes committed by Eritrean troops.
  • The resoluton stresses that the parliament “Is dismayed by the reports of rape and crimes of sexual violence against children, women and men which have been perpetrated on a staggering scale by all the belligerents; is deeply concerned by and calls for immediate attention to reports of the killing and maiming of Tigrayan, Amhara and Afarian children on ethnic grounds, which constitute war crimes and ethnic cleansing”.
  • It condemns “ethnically motivated arrests, harassment, beatings and the targeting of journalist.”
  • The resolution calls for the cooperation between Ethiopian federal government, Tigray authorities, Ethiopian Human Rights commission and the United Nations Human Rights Commission to ensure accountability for all perpetrators of crimes.
  • The parliament  “strongly condemns the use of starvation as a method of warfare.”
  • It also calls to restore basic services to Tigray and to lift the restrictions on telecommunications.
  • The resolution calls on the EU and its member states to adopt measures to ensure the protection of human rights and sanction those who violate them. It supports the European Commission’s postponement of budget support to Ethiopia.
  • Furthermore, the resolution “regrets” a UNSC failure to effectively address the situation in Ethiopia and “urges the EU and its Member States to call on the UNSC to hold regular public meetings on Ethiopia.”
  • Rectors of Katholieke Universiteit te Leuven and Norges miljø- og biovitenskapelige universitet call for a reconsideration of academic cooperation with Ethiopia, and sustained attention to the conflict’s proliferation.

Links of interest

Study says babies in Tigray dying at 4 times pre-war levels: AP

Tigray regional government says it accepts AU invitation: Addis Standard

Twitter: Statement on the African Union’s Invitation for peace talks

Twitter: Ayder Comprehensive Specialized Hospital

U.N. told Ethiopia that school hit in air strike housed displaced people: Reuters

News: President William Ruto arrives in Addis Abeba

Twitter: Luc Sels KU_Leuven called for sustained attention to Ethiopia

Twitter: Curt Rice “UniNMBU is horrified by the nature of the conflict in Ethiopia

Twitter:  Patrick Heinisch mandate of the Intl. Commission of Human Rights Experts on #Ethiopia

European Parliament resolution of 6 October 2022 on the recent humanitarian and human rights situation in Tigray, Ethiopia, notably that of children (2022/2858(RSP))

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