Ethiopia rejects US calls to pull troops from Tigray after CNN investigation into massacre
Ethiopia on Monday rejected a call from the United States to pull regional forces out of the country's Tigray region, and defended the deployment of some of those troops amid reports of human rights violations.
The exchange between Ethiopia and the US comes
after investigations were published by CNN and Amnesty International into the
massacre of civilians in two separate assaults in Tigray late last year.
On Saturday, US Secretary of State Antony
Blinken said the US was "gravely concerned by reported atrocities and the
overall deteriorating situation" and called for "the immediate
withdrawal of Eritrean forces and Amhara regional forces from Tigray."
Ethiopia's foreign ministry criticized Blinken's
remarks on Monday. "An attempt by the US to make pronouncements on
Ethiopia's internal affairs and specifically, the reference to the Amhara
regional forces redeployment ... is regrettable," the ministry said,
referring to forces from Ethiopia's Amhara state, which neighbors Tigray.
"It should be clear that such matters
are the sole responsibility of the Ethiopian government, which as a sovereign
nation, is responsible to deploy the necessary security structures and means
available in ensuring the rule of law within all corners of its borders."
The foreign ministry said it was "fully
committed" to investigating any human rights violations. But the statement
did not mention the widely reported presence of forces from neighboring Eritrea
during the recent offensive. Those forces been blamed for many abuses in Tigray
during the recent conflict -- allegations the Eritrean government denies.
Thousands of civilians are believed to have been
killed since Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a military operation
against Tigray's ruling faction, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF),
in November.
On Friday, CNN published an investigation into
one massacre that took place in Tigray on November 30. Eyewitnesses told CNN
that a group of Eritrean soldiers opened fire on Maryam Dengelat church in
Dengelat village, eastern Tigray, while hundreds of congregants were
celebrating mass. Dozens of people died over three days of mayhem, with
soldiers slaughtering local residents, displaced people and pilgrims, they
said.
Amnesty International charged in a report Friday
that Eritrean forces killed hundreds of unarmed civilians in the city of Axum
in November through indiscriminate shelling and shooting and extrajudicial
killings, in what the human rights organization said could amount to a crime
against humanity.
Eritrea's government denied involvement in the atrocities reported by Amnesty, but has yet to respond to CNN's request for comment in relation to the Dengelat massacre.
Blinken, in his press statement Saturday, called
on Ethiopia country to allow "full, independent international
investigation into all reports of human rights violations, abuses and
atrocities."
"We strongly condemn the killings,
forced removals and displacements, sexual assaults, and other extremely serious
human rights violations and abuses by several parties that multiple
organizations have reported in Tigray." He added that "those
responsible for them must be held accountable."
Blinken also acknowledged Abiy's stated
commitment to allow humanitarian aid to the region, and said that the US Agency
for International Development would send a disaster assistance response team to
Ethiopia.
After seizing control of Tigray's main cities in
late November, Abiy declared victory and maintained that no civilians were
harmed in the offensive. Abiy has also denied that soldiers from Eritrea
crossed into Tigray to support Ethiopian forces.
On Monday, Ethiopia's foreign ministry said it was working to ensure unfettered access to Tigray for the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
