By Mintesinot Melaku

The international community’s continued silence regarding the devastating use of aerial warfare against vulnerable civilian populations and humanitarian lifelines in Ethiopia has reached a critical juncture.

Recent military operations have repeatedly crossed the boundaries of human decency, most notably through drone strikes targeting internally displaced persons (IDP) camps and relief convoys. Sites such as the Jari 2 camp in the Amhara region, Adi Daero in Tigray, and humanitarian routes bound for displaced communities in Sheraro—once lifelines and sanctuaries for families fleeing conflict—have instead become scenes of unimaginable carnage.

The Tragedy on the Ground

In late October 2026, a series of successive drone strikes reportedly hit the Hayiq Jari 2 Turk IDP camp in South Wollo, in Ethiopia’s Amhara region. According to eyewitnesses and humanitarian sources, the camp was struck at least five times at approximately 15-minute intervals. The timing and repetition of these attacks raise

serious concerns, particularly regarding the potential exposure of survivors and rescuers to subsequent strikes. The attacks reportedly killed between 15 and 24 civilians, including pregnant women, students, and an eight-year-old girl, while leaving dozens more severely injured.

This assault came just weeks after a September 20, 2026 drone strike targeted a Catholic humanitarian aid convoy in northwestern Tigray. Operating under the Joint Emergency Operation Program (JEOP) and contracted through the Adigrat Diocesan Catholic Secretariat (ADCS) with support from Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the United States government, the truck was struck between Adi-Daero and Adi-Nebried. The vehicle was carrying over 41 metric tons of emergency maize and vegetable oil meant for more than

56,000 displaced people in Sheraro. The strike destroyed the vital food supplies by fire and injured both the driver and a 13-year-old girl.

These tragedies echo the horrific October 2022 airstrike on a school sheltering internally displaced persons in Adi Daero, northwestern Tigray. That attack reportedly killed more than 50 civilians and wounded approximately 70 others.

Whether targeting displacement shelters or the aid convoys keeping displaced families alive, the victims remain unarmed civilians who have already been forced to flee previous waves of violence.

What International Law Says

Under international humanitarian law civilians, civilian infrastructure, and humanitarian relief operations are entitled to strict protection during armed conflict. The Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols establish fundamental principles that all parties to an armed conflict must respect. Three principles are particularly relevant:

  • advantage expected. Military objectives cannot justify disproportionate harm to civilian populations or the destruction of essential humanitarian assistance.
  • The Principle of Precaution: All parties must take every feasible precaution to avoid or minimize civilian casualties and damage to civilian objects. In the case of Adi Daero, humanitarian organizations reportedly shared the

GPS coordinates of the IDP camp with the federal government months before the strike. Similarly, humanitarian aid routes and convoys rely on established notification protocols to ensure safe passage. When known displacement sites and clearly identified relief convoys are struck, it raises serious questions about whether the necessary precautions were taken to protect civilians and aid workers.

When military forces carry out successive strikes against known civilian locations or destroy neutral humanitarian assistance, such operations demand rigorous investigation. They cannot simply be dismissed as collateral damage or operational errors. Under Article 8 of the Rome Statute, intentionally directing attacks against civilians who are not

directly participating in hostilities, as well as intentionally attacking personnel, installations, material, units, or vehicles involved in humanitarian assistance, constitutes a war crime.

The Demand for Accountability

The federal government in Addis Ababa, led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, has consistently maintained that its aerial operations target armed extremist groups. However, reports of civilian deaths, mass casualties, bodies recovered from displacement shelters, and the destruction of U.S.- and Catholic-funded food aid raise serious questions about these claims and the conduct of military operations.

The international community cannot

remain silent while sophisticated drone technology is reportedly being used in ways that expose some of Ethiopia’s most vulnerable populations to devastating attacks and starvation. The responsibility for ensuring compliance with international humanitarian law extends beyond drone operators to military commanders and senior officials who authorize, direct, or oversee such operations.

Where the legal requirements are met, those who order, authorize, or knowingly facilitate unlawful attacks must be held individually accountable. The principle of command responsibility must not remain an empty provision of international law.

If international humanitarian law is to retain any credibility, independent international bodies must conduct impartial investigations into the repeated

bombardments of IDP camps and humanitarian convoys in Ethiopia. Those found responsible for ordering, planning, or executing war crimes must face justice, regardless of their military rank or political position.

Where the legal requirements are met, those who order, authorize, or knowingly facilitate unlawful attacks must be held individually accountable. The principle of command responsibility must not remain an empty provision of international law.

If international humanitarian law is to retain any credibility, independent international bodies must conduct impartial investigations into the repeated bombardments of IDP camps and humanitarian convoys in Ethiopia. Those found responsible for ordering, planning, or executing war crimes must face justice, regardless of their military rank or political position.

The lives of displaced civilians and the humanitarian lifelines keeping them alive cannot be treated as expendable. The world must break its silence, demand accountability, and ensure that the victims of Jari, Adi Daero, and the attacked aid convoys in Tigray are not forgotten.