Gira Aras massacre

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Coordinates: 14°00′12″N 39°30′37″E / 14.0034°N 39.51023°E / 14.0034; 39.51023

Gira Aras massacre
Part of Tigray War
Gira Aras is located in Tigray Region
Gira Aras
Gira Aras
Location of in Tigray (Ethiopia)
Location (Tigrinya: ግራዓረስ), Tigray Region, Ethiopia
Date22 April 2021
TargetTigrayans
Attack type
Deaths12 civilians
PerpetratorsEthiopia Ethiopian National Defence Force

The Gira Aras massacre was a mass extrajudicial killing that took place in (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.[2]

Perpetrators[]

Witnesses reported the perpetrators of this massacre as being Ethiopian soldiers.[3]

Victims[]

The “Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation” mentions twelve victims of this massacre,[1] eleven of whom have been identified.[3]

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.[2][4][5][6]

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.[7]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Annys, S., Vanden Bempt, T., Negash, E., De Sloover, L., Nyssen, J., 2021. Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation[self-published source]
  2. ^ a b The World radio (2 April 2021): Counting the victims in Tigray
  3. ^ a b TGHAT, A compilation of the verified list of civilian victims from different sources[self-published source]
  4. ^ EuroNews, 2 April 2021 – See film embedded in the news item: G7 'seriously concerned' about human rights violations in Ethiopia's Tigray region
  5. ^ CBC, 2 April 2021: As It Happens: The Friday Edition (from 28:00 to 35:30) Tigray, Ethiopia Massacre
  6. ^ The Guardian, 2 April 2021: Ethiopia: 1,900 people killed in massacres in Tigray identified
  7. ^ France24, 18 March 2021: UN rights chief agrees to joint Tigray probe

External links[]

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