Security forces allied to Ethiopia's army are rounding up and killing Tigrayan civilians in a fresh wave of ethnic violence in the country's brutal war, two rights groups said Thursday. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said armed groups from the Amhara region were responsible for a recent surge in horrific abuses in the long-contested western part of Tigray. In November and December, Amnesty and HRW documented Amhara forces systematically detaining, torturing and starving Tigrayan civilians, including teenagers and the elderly, living in the disputed region. The rights watchdogs said this "new onslaught of abuses ... should ring alarm bells" amid a conflict that has fanned historic grievances between Amharas and Tigrayans, two of Ethiopia's largest ethnic groups. The United Nations has expressed worry over reports of large-scale displacement from western Tigray, where the US has previously warned of ethnic cleansing.

Source: Ethiopian News December 16, 2021 18:35 UTC