Active Genocide Alert - Ethiopia in Amhara Region - Update 1
12/10/23, 5:00 PM
The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention (Lemkin Institute) is issuing an update on its Active Genocide Alert (AGA) for Ethiopia’s Amhara region, originally issued on 23 September 2023. Inter alia, this update is prompted by the ongoing killings of ethnic Amharas by the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), and the Oromia Special Force (OSF), as well as an increase in the use of military drones to attack the civilian population, the ongoing state of emergency in the region, which is being used to silence political opposition, obscure the federal government’s actions, and limit daily activities, and the ongoing anti-Amhara sentiment in the Oromia region.
Since 4 August 2023, the Amhara region has been under a state of emergency. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government announced this measure in response to increased fighting between the ENDF and the non-state armed group known as Fano. One of the most recent elements of the state of emergency has been a total telecommunications blackout across the region which has significantly restricted access to information since its establishment. The Lemkin Institute recalls that Abiy Ahmed’s administration employed this tactic 22 times since 2016 to obscure its actions from international scrutiny.
Since 4 August 2023, the Amhara region has been under a state of emergency. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government announced this measure in response to increased fighting between the ENDF and the non-state armed group known as Fano. One of the most recent elements of the state of emergency has been a total telecommunications blackout across the region which has significantly restricted access to information since its establishment. The Lemkin Institute recalls that Abiy Ahmed’s administration employed this tactic 22 times since 2016 to obscure its actions from international scrutiny.
As a result, the present update draws heavily on information provided, among other sources, by the Amhara Association of America (AAA). While the Lemkin Institute could not independently verify most of the incidents outlined in the following pages due to the aforesaid blackout, the available data, combined with the Ethiopian government’s past actions in the Amhara region and elsewhere, as well as the failure to renew the mandate of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) during the 54th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, justifies further analysis of the situation on the ground and increased international pressure on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s regime.