Gira Aras massacre | |
---|---|
Part of Tigray War | |
Gira Aras Gira Aras | |
Location | Gira Aras (Tigrinya: ግራዓረስ), Tigray Region, Ethiopia |
Date | 22 April 2021 |
Target | Tigrayans |
Attack type | |
Deaths | 12 civilians |
Perpetrators | Ethiopian National Defence Force |
The Gira Aras massacre was a mass extrajudicial killing that took place in Gira Aras (Tigrinya: ግራዓረስ) in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia during the Tigray War, around 22 April 2021.[1] Gira Aras is a village that belongs to woreda Hawzen, Eastern zone of Tigray.
Massacre
The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) killed twelve civilians in Gira Aras (Eastern Tigray) on 22 April 2021.[1]
Typical massacres committed by Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers in the Tigray war are (1) revenge when they lose a battle; (2) to terrorise and extract information about whereabouts of TPLF leaders; (3) murder of suspected family members of TDF fighters; and (4) terrorising the Tigray society as a whole such as in case of mass killings in churches.
Perpetrators
Witnesses reported the perpetrators of this massacre as being Ethiopian soldiers.[2]
Victims
The “Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation” mentions twelve victims of this massacre,[1] eleven of whom have been identified.[2]
Reactions
The “Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation”,[1] that documented this massacre received international media attention, particularly regarding its Annex A, that lists massacres in the Tigray War.[3][4][5]
After months of denial by the Ethiopian authorities that massacres occurred in Tigray, a joint investigation by OHCHR and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission was announced in March 2021.[6]
References
- 1 2 3 4 Annys, S., Vanden Bempt, T., Negash, E., De Sloover, L., Nyssen, J., 2021. Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation
- 1 2 TGHAT, A compilation of the verified list of civilian victims from different sources
- ↑ EuroNews, 2 April 2021 – See film embedded in the news item: G7 'seriously concerned' about human rights violations in Ethiopia's Tigray region
- ↑ CBC, 2 April 2021: As It Happens: The Friday Edition (from 28:00 to 35:30) Tigray, Ethiopia Massacre
- ↑ The Guardian, 2 April 2021: Ethiopia: 1,900 people killed in massacres in Tigray identified
- ↑ France24, 18 March 2021: UN rights chief agrees to joint Tigray probe