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Human rights organization Amnesty International stated in a 36-page report that Ethiopian and Eritrean troops raped hundreds of women and girls during the Tigray War, causing some women and girls to be sexually enslaved and tortured.
Based on interviews with 63 survivors, the report (PDF) Announced on Wednesday, revealing a scourge that Ethiopian law enforcement officials are already investigating. At least 3 soldiers have been convicted and 25 others have been charged.
Some survivors said they were gang-raped while in custody for several weeks. Others described being raped in front of their families.
Some people report that objects including nails and gravel have been inserted into their vaginas, “causing long-lasting and possibly irreparable damage,” Amnesty International said.
“It is clear that rape and sexual violence have been used as weapons of war, causing lasting physical and psychological harm to women and girls in Tigray,” said Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnes Karamad.
“Hundreds of people have been subjected to cruel treatment aimed at degrading and dehumanizing.
“The severity and scale of the sexual crimes committed are particularly shocking and constitute war crimes and possible crimes against humanity.”
“All of us have been raped”
After the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops to Tigray to overthrow his regional ruling party, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), northern Ethiopia has been suffering from violence since November Suffering.
He said the move was in response to the TPLF’s attack on the federal barracks.
As the conflict deepened, the number of humanitarian casualties increased sharply, and rescuers struggled to reach people who are now inaccessible. According to the United Nations, 400,000 people in Tigray are currently facing famine-like conditions.
Amnesty International said the alleged rapists included government forces, troops from neighboring Eritrea-supporting Abi-as well as security forces and militia fighters from the Amhara region of Ethiopia.
More than 12 survivors told Amnesty International that they were only raped by Eritreans, while others said that Eritreans and Ethiopians worked together.
“They raped us and starved us. Too many people gang-raped us,” said a 21-year-old survivor who reported being held for 40 days.
“They took about 30 women…all of us were raped.”
Amnesty International pointed out that sexual violence is widespread and aims to instill fear and “humiliate” victims and their ethnic groups.
The organization stated that soldiers and militias often use “racial slander, insults, threats and degrading comments.” Several survivors said that their rapists told them, “This is what you deserve” and “You are disgusting.”
Investigating
Agence France-Presse has previously interviewed multiple survivors of gang rapes by Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers.
Amnesty International said on Wednesday that Tigray’s medical facility “registered 1,288 cases of gender-based violence from February to April 2021,” but doctors noted that many survivors did not come forward.
Amnesty International said that survivors still suffer from serious physical and mental health complications.
The organization stated that although many people complained of physical trauma such as “continuous bleeding, back pain, immobility and fistula”, others tested positive for HIV after being raped.
In February, Ethiopian Women’s Minister Filsan Abdullahi Ahmed stated that there was “no doubt” that there was a rape incident in Tigray. After that, a working group she established sent a report to the Attorney General’s Office.
On Tuesday, Firsan told AFP that law enforcement officials should determine the scale of the problem and who is responsible.
“I think they are doing their best… they have to really research thoroughly before they can determine who committed the crime.”
But she added: “I want them to move faster so that I can say justice is done, and I hope we can see justice done.”
In May, the Attorney General’s Office stated that three soldiers were convicted and sentenced for rape, and another 25 were charged with “perpetrating sexual violence and rape.”
It said that the investigation is continuing.
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