By: Eyob Tilahun Abera

Following a recent spark of war between Abiy’s forces and Fano in the Amhara region of Ethiopia, the regime declared a state of emergency in the region and committed unspeakable atrocities targeting civilians, and their properties.

Abiy’s regime quickly broke a new record for its atrocity crimes and human rights abuses. The regime answered with tanks, artillery, airstrikes, and drone attacks on people who asked for freedom and survival. In several areas of the Amhara region, Abiy’s troops fired upon the demonstrators and killed many civilians.

All of what Abiy’s regime did proved its state terrorism against civilians. His regime is committing terrorist acts similar to those of international terrorist organizations. Incidences since 2018 clearly showed that Abiy is a warmonger and terrorist against its people.

For example, a drone attack on civilians in the central town of Finote Selam, Debrebirhan, the bombing of heavy artillery in city centers across the region, and the shelling of civilians and their residences by Abiy’s regime indicated state terrorism.

 Shockingly, whole families were killed by Abiy’s troops via house-to-house searches, particularly in Bahir Dar, and the dead bodies were found after several days and buried in mass graves. It is a war crime and a violation of international law. Abiy’s troops committed gross human rights abuse, mass killing, mass detention, looting, and state terrorism actions against civilians.

To hide documentation of its gross human rights violations, the federal government blocked internet access in the Amhara region, violating the public’s right to freedom of expression and access to information. Also, media access to the Amhara region was blocked. Now, he is committing top-shelved atrocity crimes after he blocked the Amhara region from the rest of the world. Abiy’s regime is highly abusing the state of emergency declared in the Amhara region.

The federal government also admitted that it has detained ethnic Amhara people in informal detention centers in Addis Ababa, including schools. In the broader sense, ethnic Amhara means including Agew and Qimant minority groups. 

Detaining and torturing people such as opposition party members, journalists, activists, critics, and writers and holding them without court hearings for a long period is common, and this is what he is doing now.

The regime frequently commits terrorist actions and immediately blames others, then promptly broadcasts its false documentary drama. For example, after the assassination of officials mainly in the Amhara region, Abiy’s regime disclosed the identity of the killer or killers within minutes without any police investigation. Then the regime orders military action against certain groups.

However, the public in turn immediately suspected that the killer of these officials was Abiy itself, to blame others and attack them. So, this is why Abiy’s regime is branded as a state terrorist.

Abiy’s squad might commit widespread state-sponsored terrorist actions in several areas to separate Fano from the community by blaming these actions. However, the community is well aware that Fano is well disciplined, as there has been no single report indicating misbehavior by Fano since the start of the clashes.

The international community is kindly requested to put pressure on the state-terrorist regime of Abiy to refrain from its catastrophic actions against civilians.

Abiy’s regime must know that there is no solution by guns to political problems rather than political solutions through dialogue. You have to calm down, stop killing our people, and be accountable for the atrocities you have committed.