Media Monitoring: Dec 7th-14th
City Captures
UPDATE 2-Witnesses say Tigrayan forces in Ethiopia retook Lalibela, UN Heritage site
Reuters, December 12th, 2021
ADDIS ABABA, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Rebellious Tigrayan forces have recaptured the Ethiopian town of Lalibela, witnesses told Reuters on Sunday, less than two weeks after the military and its allies took control of it as part of a broader offensive that pushed back Tigrayan forces on multiple fronts.
Â
International Intervention
UNHCR to hold session on Ethiopia Conflict at EU request
Africa News, December 14th, 2021
The UN Human Rights Council will meet on Friday to consider an EU draft resolution on Ethiopia calling for an investigation into abuses committed by all parties since late 2020.
How International Bodies Can Help Prevent More Ethiopia Massacres
Laetitia Bader, December 8th, 2021, HRW
A full year has passed since Eritrean government forces massacred Tigrayan civilians in Ethiopia’s historical town of Axum. But survivors of the massacre and of other atrocities in Tigray are still no closer to accessing justice and redress – an accountability shortfall that is fuelling further abuses as conflict spreads.
Ethiopia accuses US and allies of ‘destructive’ approach
Al Jazeera, December 7th, 2021
Prime Minister’s spokesperson says accusations of illegal detentions by the government were ‘misguided’.
Â
Conflict
How armed drones may have helped turn the tide in Ethiopia’s war
Alex Gatopoulos, December 10th, 2021, Al Jazeera
Ethiopia’s 13-month war has seen yet another dramatic turn as the federal government’s counteroffensive against fighters from the northern Tigray region has made substantial advances, reversing the spectacular gains made recently by the Tigrayan forces in their push southwards.
As government offensive pushes forward, scars of war dot Ethiopia's Amhara region
Reuters, December 10th, 2021
GASHENA, Ethiopia, Dec 9 (Reuters) - In a roadside village shattered by one of Africa's bloodiest current conflicts, a donkey and its young, turbaned master tiptoe past an unexploded shell rusting by the blasted remnants of a tank, its turret and tracks tossed sideways.
Ethiopia’s PM Abiy to return to Addis Ababa from battlefront
Al Jazeera, December 8th, 2021
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says he is returning to the capital Addis Ababa from the battlefront after pro-government forces claimed major advances in recent days against Tigrayan forces.
World News: Citizen Fighters Raise the Stakes in Ethiopia's Conflict
Nicholas Bariyo, December 8th, 2021, The Wall Street Journal
Across Ethiopia, thousands of men and women are quitting their jobs to enlist with the country's armed forces, as rebels from the Tigray People's Liberation Front have threatened to invade the capital, fanning fears that a simmering conflict will spiral into full-blown civil war.
Â
Humanitarian Aid
UN halts food aid in Ethiopia’s Kombolcha, Dessie after looting
Al Jazeera, December 8th, 2021
The World Food Programme (WFP) has suspended food distribution in Ethiopia’s Kombolcha and Dessie towns after looting of supplies that staff were unable to stop due to intimidation, including being held at gunpoint, according to the United Nations.