Kola Tembien February 2021 massacres

The Kola Tembien February 2021 massacres were a mass extrajudicial killing that took place in Kola Tembien (Tigrinya: ቆላ ተምቤን) in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia during the Tigray War, on 10 February 2021.[1][2] Kola Tembien is a district that belongs to the Central zone of Tigray.

Kola Tembien February 2021 massacres
Part of Tigray War
Kola Tembien is located in Tigray Region
Kola Tembien
Kola Tembien
Kola Tembien is located in Ethiopia
Kola Tembien
Kola Tembien
Location of Kola Tembien in Tigray (Ethiopia)
LocationKola Tembien (Tigrinya: ቆላ ተምቤን), Tigray Region, Ethiopia
Date10 February 2021
TargetTigrayans
Attack type
Deaths182 civilians
PerpetratorsEthiopia Ethiopian National Defence Force
Eritrea Eritrean Defence Forces

Massacre
Partial view of Abiy Addi in Kola Tembien

The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) killed dozens of civilians in a killing spree across villages in Kola Tembien (Central Tigray) on 10 February 2021. [2][1]

[O]n February 10, all the terrors of Ethiopia’s civil war descended on the town and at least a dozen surrounding villages. (…) [C]ivilians, mainly farmers, had been massacred in Abiy Addi and the villages of Adi Asmiean, Bega Sheka, Adichilo, Amberswa, Wetlaqo, Semret, Guya, Zelakme, Arena, Mitsawerki, Yeqyer and Shilum Emni - villages about 60 miles from Tigray's capital.
— Lucy Kassa, The Telegraph, [2]

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.[3] The Kola Tembien massacres were particularly a revenge for lost battles further west in the Jawmaro mountains, while terrorising the Tigrayan society at the same time.[2]

Perpetrators

The Telegraph reported the perpetrators as being Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers.[2]

Victims

The Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation mentions 122 victims,[1] and The Telegraph 182,[2] of which 18 have been identified.[4]

Reactions

Eritrea’s information minister, Yemane Gebremeskel, could not address this massacre specifically, but stated that the government of Eritrea has zero tolerance for and never targets civilians in war. ‘’The Telegraph’’ asked the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s office to comment but received no answer.[2] 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][5][6][7]

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.[8]

References
  1. Annys, S., Vanden Bempt, T., Negash, E., De Sloover, L., Nyssen, J., 2021. Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation
  2. The Telegraph, 7 April 2021: 'Their bodies were torn into pieces': Ethiopian and Eritrean troops accused of massacre in Tigray
  3. The World radio (2 April 2021): Counting the victims in Tigray
  4. TGHAT, A compilation of the verified list of civilian victims from different sources
  5. EuroNews, 2 April 2021 – See film embedded in the news item: G7 'seriously concerned' about human rights violations in Ethiopia's Tigray region
  6. CBC, 2 April 2021: As It Happens: The Friday Edition (from 28:00 to 35:30) Tigray, Ethiopia Massacre
  7. The Guardian, 2 April 2021: Ethiopia: 1,900 people killed in massacres in Tigray identified
  8. France24, 18 March 2021: UN rights chief agrees to joint Tigray probe

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