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Published: Wednesday, June 19, 2024 – 7:15 PM | Last updated: Wednesday, June 19, 2024 – 7:15 PM
In terms of death toll, the Tigray War in Ethiopia is probably the bloodiest armed conflict of the 21st century, and even one of the bloodiest armed conflicts since the end of the Cold War. From its outbreak in 2020 to its official ceasefire in 2022, the conflict has claimed the lives of up to 400,000 soldiers and 300,000 civilians (men and women).
Despite the human suffering, the war is not getting the international attention it so desperately needs. After the so-called steps taken, the world is moving on, undeterred by the initial efforts. More pointedly, the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia was disbanded before completing its work! Despite the US admitting that over half a million people were killed, crimes against humanity and war crimes were committed, financial and economic aid returned to pre-war conditions! Similarly, the EU resumed its $6.8 billion development strategy with Ethiopia despite the lack of accountability!
As a result, international efforts to verify serious violations of international law have not been adequately promoted or supported. Although hostilities are set to officially cease in 2022, innocent lives are still being lost and millions continue to face food insecurity caused by military operations.
Therefore, there must be investigations and accountability not only for the blockade of humanitarian aid that has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Tigray residents, but also for the widely reported crimes of mass murder, rape, violence, forced displacement, physical abuse and torture, as well as the targeting of critical civilian infrastructure such as the healthcare system.
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A few days ago, the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy released a groundbreaking new report titled “Genocide in Tigray: Grave Violations of International Law and Pathways to Accountability.” The report provides a legal analysis of the allegations invoking the Genocide Convention and describes the paths to accountability that should be taken, including measures at the national and international levels.
The report was prepared by a team of international law experts and specialists in fields such as international human rights law and international criminal law. While several other reports have reached similar conclusions on some of the allegations, the New Lines Institute report is the first to directly link these allegations to the Genocide Convention and call for corresponding action.
The report finds that there is reasonable basis to believe that war crimes and genocide were committed by all parties against the Tigray people during the conflict; they are members of Ethiopian and allied forces, particularly groups such as the Ethiopian National Defense Forces, the Eritrean National Defense Forces and the Amhara Special Forces.
These genocidal acts include killing, serious bodily or mental harm, measures to intentionally prevent childbirth, and the deliberate imposition of living conditions designed to destroy the Tigray people. The report found that some people made statements amounting to direct and public incitement to genocide.
Regardless of whether such actions by Ethiopia and its allies were part of a plan or were supported at a higher level, as a party to the Genocide Convention, Ethiopia is obliged to take effective measures to prevent such acts from occurring and, if they do occur, to punish those who commit them.
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For the reasons outlined above, the international community is compelled to take action before the International Court of Justice under Article 9 of the Genocide Convention. The international community must also take steps to ensure an impartial and independent international criminal investigation, thereby ensuring that justice is finally served for human rights violations in Tigray.
Ibrahim the Great
National Interest
Translated by: Yasmin Abdul Latif
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