Adigrat massacres

Civilian killings in Ethiopia during the Tigray War

Adigrat before the Tigray War

The Adigrat massacres were mass extrajudicial killings by the Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) that took place in and near Adigrat in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia during late 2020 during the Tigray War. These included 86 civilians killed in Zalambessa around 13 November 2020, 8–15 in Hawzen on 25 November, 80–150 at the Maryam Dengelat church near Idaga Hamus on 30 November.(more than thousand Tigreans massacred by Eritrean troops in Axum on 27 Nov 2020)  (source: Adigrat massacres’ documentation).

## November

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See also: Zalambessa massacre, November 2020 Idaga Hamus massacre, and Dengelat massacre

After shelling the town of Zalambessa on 13 November 2020, the EDF and ENDF killed 86 civilians, mostly during house-to-house searches.[1]

On 21 November, shortly after capturing Idaga Hamus, the EDF executed 24 civilians.[2]

After the EDF took control of Adigrat itself, the EDF took 12 civilian men to the edge of the town and executed them.[2] Official Ethiopian federal sources said that the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) took control of Adigrat on 21 November.[3]

On 25 November, the EDF executed 8–15 civilians after handcuffing them at the Addis Pharmaceutical Factory in Adigrat and 8 civilians in their houses in Hawzen.

On 30 November, the EDF killed between 80 and 150 civilians in the compound of Maryam Dengelat church 5 km south-west of Idaga Hamus, according to Nyssen. Europe External Programme with Africa (EEPA) reported the number of executions by the EDF at the Maryam Dengelat church as 150, with an unknown date.[4]

## December

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In late December, Zenebu, a witness from Hawzen interviewed by Associated Press, stated that she saw 70 bodies of people lying on the ground who she recognised. She stated that a 12-year-old boy in Hawzen had been killed by soldiers after carrying out errands for them. She attributed the killings to the ENDF, Amhara forces and the EDF. She identified EDF members as Eritrean based on cheek markings and their dialect of Tigrinya.[5]

The EHRC–OHCHR Tigray investigation reported the massacres in this locality, without going into further detail.[6]

## References

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1. ^ Zalambessa Alumni Committee (27 March 2021). "Brief Information on the Crimes Committed and Horrendous Situtaion [sic] Inflicted on the People of Zalambessa and Its Surroundings by the Military Forces of Eritrea and Ethiopia". Tigrai Online.
2. ^ a b Zelalem, Zecharias; Brown, Will (8 January 2021). "Eritrea's brutal shadow war in Ethiopia laid bare". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
3. ^ "Ethiopia says it captured Tigrayan town of Adigrat". Al Jazeera English. 21 November 2020. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
4. ^ "Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 31 – 20 December" (PDF). Europe External Programme with Africa. 20 December 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
5. ^ "Witnesses: Eritrean soldiers loot, kill in Ethiopia's Tigray". AP News. 26 April 2021.
6. ^ Tibebu, Israel (3 November 2021). "Report of the EHRC/OHCHR Joint Investigation into Alleged Violations of International Human Rights, Humanitarian and Refugee Law Committed by all Parties to the Conflict in the Tigray Region of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia" (PDF). EHRC, OHCHR. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 November 2021. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

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Tigray war

Background|

| History|

* History of Western Tigray
* Welkait question
* 1995 Constitution of Ethiopia
* Eritrean–Ethiopian War
* border conflict
* Elections in Ethiopia
* 2005 election / violence
* 2014–16 Oromo protests
* 2016–18 state of emergency
* Resignation of Hailemariam Desalegn

|

Prelude|

* Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present)
* 2018 Eritrea–Ethiopia summit
* Tripartite Agreement
* Formation of the Prosperity Party
* COVID-19 pandemic in Ethiopia
* Hachalu Hundessa riots
* 2020 Tigray regional election

Timeline|

* Northern Command attacks
* Battle of Humera
* Asmara rocket attacks
* Mekelle offensive
* Operation Alula
* TDF–OLA joint offensive
* 2021–2022 Ethiopian state of emergency
* ENDF National Unity Offensive
* Battle of Shire

Impact|

* Reactions
* 2021 Ethiopian general election
* Spillover
* Sudan
* 2022 al-Shabaab invasion of Ethiopia

Peace process|

* Overview
* Ethiopia–Tigray peace agreement
* Interim Administration

Groups|

| Key actors|

* Ethiopian federal government
*  Eritrea
* Involvement
* Tigray /  TPLF
* Amhara
* Afar

|

Institutions|

* Ethiopian National Defense Force
* Transitional Government of Tigray
* Tigray Defense Forces
* Eritrean Defence Forces

Militias|

* Fano
* UFEFCF

Human rights
organisations|

* EHRC
* Inquiry Board

| Non-state|

* EHRCO
* ERCS
* HRCE
* Seb Hidri
* Yikono

|

Human rights|

| Casualties|

* Casualties of the Tigray war

|

Discrimination|

* Ethnic profiling
* Internment camps

War crimes|

| Massacres|

| 2020|

* Mai Kadra
* Humera
* Adigrat
* Zalambessa
* Dengelat
* 1st Wukro
* Hitsats
* 1st Mekelle
* Axum
* Goda
* Hagere Selam
* Ziban Gedena
* Gijet

|

2021|

* Bora
* Debano
* Mahbere Dego
* 2nd Wukro
* Kola Tembien
* Zamr
* Gira Aras
* Guh
* Togoga
* Galikoma
* Chenna
* Kobo
* 2nd Mekelle
* Kombolcha

2022|

* Dedebit
* Berhale
* 3rd Mekelle
* Adi Daero

* Sexual violence
* Hawzen
* Destruction of Heritage
* Aksum
* Debre Damo
* Negash mosque
* Predictions of a genocide in Ethiopia

Refugees/IDPs|

* Hamdayet (Ethiopians)
* Refoulement of Eritrean refugees
* Shire

Food|

* Famine in northern Ethiopia (2020–present)

Investigations|

* ACHPR Tigray investigation
* EHRC–OHCHR Tigray investigation
* ICHREE

Category /  Commons
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