NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – Ethiopian security forces have killed more than 75 people and injured nearly 200 during deadly ethnic unrest in June and July after the killing of a popular singer, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission said on Friday.
The commission’s report says 123 people have been killed and at least 500 injured amid one of the worst outbreaks of ethnic violence in recent years, a “widespread and systematic attack” on civilians pointing to crimes against humanity. Some victims were beheaded, tortured or dragged into the streets by attackers.
Ethnic violence is a major challenge for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, who called for national unity among more than 80 ethnic groups in Africa’s second-largest country.
The unrest in June and July followed the assassination of singer Hachalu Hundessa, who had been a prominent voice in the anti-government protests that led to Abiy taking office in 2018 and announcing radical political reforms. However, those reforms have paved the way for long-standing ethnic and other complaints.
The commission found that, amid street protests after Hachalu’s death, “civilians were attacked inside their homes by individual and grouped perpetrators and beaten and killed on the streets in a horrible and cruel manner with sticks, knives, axes.” , sharp iron bars, stones and electric cables. ”
More than 6,000 people have been displaced and at least 900 properties have been looted, burned or vandalized, the report said. The attacks often targeted ethnic Amhara or Orthodox Christians.
“Although it is understandable that the security forces had the difficult task of restoring order in the face of such widespread violence, the proportionality of the force engaged in some contexts is highly questionable,” the report said.
For example, in several communities, “the commission found that there were people killed with bullet wounds to the head, gunshot wounds to the chest or back. People who do not take part in the protests – passers-by, spectators watching from their doorstep, young people, the elderly trying to mediate, people with mental illness and even police officers – have lost their lives. “
In other cases, the commission found that “local authorities and security did not respond to repeated requests for help from the victims, being told instead” that the elderly did not give any intervention order “… Survivors and witnesses say also how the police sometimes kept an eye on the attacks as they took place. “
Some watchdogs have warned of a return to repressive measures in Ethiopia, while authorities face hate speech and ethnic violence.
The unrest was unrelated to the conflict in the northern Ethiopian region of Tigray, which began in early November, but was another sign of tensions that have strained the country of some 110 million people in the heart of the Horn of Africa.
An Abiy spokeswoman did not immediately comment on the report, and the commission did not say what the government’s response was. Interviews with government officials and security officials were part of the commission’s inquiry, which also involved visiting about 40 communities.
The commission said it had found no indication of “ongoing efforts to investigate the use of force by security officers during riots and to respond to those who have caused unnecessary human suffering”.
The report noted that “crimes against humanity of this nature combined with the current national context are signs that the risk of atrocities, including genocide, is on the rise” and called for investigations, justice and “a lasting and institutional solution to increasing discrimination and attacks on minorities. “