Ethiopia: A Cathedral of Peace in Tigray | The Frankfurter Rundschau (FR) Germany

❖ ኢትዮጵያ፤ በትግራይ የሰላም ካቴድራል | የፍራንክፈርተር ሩንድሻው (FR) የጀርመን ዕለታዊ ጋዜጣ (ከጀርመንኛው የተተረጎመ)

👉 ገብርኤል 😇 ማርያም 👉 ኡራኤል 👉 ጊዮርጊስ 👉 ተክለ ሐይማኖት 👉 መርቆርዮስ 👉 ዮሴፍ 👉 መድኃኔ ዓለም

• “በአውሮፓ ብዙም የማይታወቅ ነገር አለ፡ እሱም፤ የጀርመን ጎሣዎች ገና ዛፎችንና ኮረብታዎችን ሲያመልኩ በዚህኛው የአፍሪካ ክፍል ግን ክርስትና ተስፋፍቶ ነበር።“
• “ካህኑ ኪዳይ ትንሽ ካሰቡ በኋላ፤ ‘እግዚአብሔር የሚቀጣው ግለሰቦችን ብቻ ሳይሆን ማህበረሰቡንም ጭምር ነው ፤ በተለይ ማህበረሰቡ ኃጢአት በሠራ ጊዜ። በትግራይም ያለው ሁኔታ ያ ነው ሲሉ ካህኑ አክለውም ህዝቡ ዋሽተው ሰረቁ፣ ልጃገረዶች በጣም አጭር ቀሚስ ለብሰው ነበር፣ ወጣቶቹም በጣም በፈንጠዝያና በዳንኪራ ይጨፍራሉ።‘ ነገር ግን የኤርትራ ወታደሮች የፈጸሙትን አረመኔያዊ ድርጊት ሰበብ ማቅረብ አይፈልጉምም፤ ዋና አዛዣቸውን ርዕሰ መስተዳድር ኢሳያስ አፈወርቂን “የዲያብሎስ አባት ብሎ ይጠሯቸዋል።“
• “ከሰሃራ በስተደቡብ የሚገኘው አንጋፋው የክርስቲያን ገዳም ደብረ ዳሞ በኤርትራ የጦር ጀቶች ቦንብ ተመታ። አማሮች የፈረዳሹም ቅዱስ ቂርቆስ ቤተ ክርስቲያንን አቃጥለዋል – በርካታ ቅርሶች ላይ ጉዳት ደርሷል። የኢትዮጵያ ወታደሮች ከአቡነ ታዴዎስ ገዳም ጥንታዊ የብራና ጽሑፎችን ሰርቀዋል፣ በህዳር 2020 ቅድስት የሆነችውን አክሱምን ከተማ በያዙ ጊዜ ከኤርትራ የመጡት ጓዶቻቸው በርካታ ካህናትን ጨምሮ ከ400 በላይ ህይወታቸውን አጥተዋል። የአምልኮ ቦታዎችም በእርስ በርስ ጦርነቱ ተዘርፈዋል።“
• በትንሹ እስከ ፬፻/ 400 የሚደርሱ አብያተ ክርስቲያናት እና ገዳማት ተጎድተዋል።
• “ዓለም አቀፍ ድርጅቶች በእርስ በርስ ጦርነት ወቅት የተፈጸሙትን ስፍር ቁጥር የሌላቸውን የሰብአዊ መብት ወንጀሎች በማጣራት ላይ ባሉበት ወቅት፣ ለአምልኮ ቦታዎች ጥፋትና ዘረፋ ትኩረት የሚሰጥ የለም ማለት ይቻላል ሲሉ በአዲስ አበባ የፀጥታ ጥናት ተቋም ባልደረባ ታደሰ ሲሚ መተኪያ “እነዚህም የጦር ወንጀሎች ናቸው”” ብለዋል።“
• ከሃዲዎቹ ክርስቲያኖች በአስደናቂው ተራራማ በሆነው የጋርዓልታ ዓለም ውስጥ እንኳን ሙሉ በሙሉ ደህና ሊሆኑ አይችሉም፡ በመጀመሪያ “በኦርቶዶክስ” ክርስቲያን ባልንጀሮቻቸው ይሰደዱ ነበር፣ በኋላም አዲስ አምልኮ ከነበረውና የእስልምና ነቢይ መሀመድ ተከታዮች ጋር ተፋጠጡ!።
• ለካህኑ፣ አውራጃው ከቅድስት አክሱም ከተማ ጋር፣ የእስራኤላውያን የቃል ኪዳኑ ታቦት በዚያ ይቀመጥ ነበር ተብሎ የሚታሰበው፣ ጥንታውያን ዓለት አብያተ ክርስቲያናት የብራና ጽሑፎች የያዙት የኦርቶዶክስ እምነት ማዕከል ነው፡– “እውነት በዚህ ካልተረፈች፤ ሌላ የትም ልትኖር አትችልም። በመጨረሻ መንገዳችንን ስንጨርስ ንስር በእኛ እና በሁሉን ቻይ እግዚአብሔር አምላክ መካከል ይከባል።
• “What is hardly known in Europe: Christianity was already widespread in this part of Africa when the Germanic tribes were still worshipping trees and hills.”
• Priest Kiday thinks for a while and then says that God punishes not only individuals but also the community – especially when the collective has sinned. That was certainly the case in Tigray, the priest adds: the people lied and stole, the girls wore skirts that were far too short, the young men danced too exuberantly. However, he does not want to justify the barbaric actions of the Eritrean soldiers: He calls their commander-in-chief, head of state Isaias Afwerki, “the father of the devil.
• Debre Dammo, the oldest Christian monastery south of the Sahara, was bombed by Eritrean military jets. Amharic militiamen set fire to the Feredashum St. Kirkos church – numerous artifacts were damaged. Ethiopian soldiers stole ancient manuscripts from the Abune Tadewos monastery, and when they captured the holy city of Axum in November 2020, their comrades from Eritrea inflicted a massacre with well over 400 dead, including several priests. Places of worship also looted in civil war.
• Up to 400 churches and monasteries were at least partially damaged.
• While international organizations are investigating the countless human rights crimes committed during the civil war, virtually no one is paying attention to the destruction and looting of places of worship, complains Tadesse Simie Metekia of the Institute for Security Studies in Addis Ababa: “These are also war crimes.”
• The apostate Christians could never be completely safe, even in the bizarre mountain world of Gar’alta: First they were persecuted by their “orthodox” fellow Christians, and later they were confronted with a new sect, the followers of the Islamic prophet Mohammed.
• For the priest, the province with the Holy City of Axum, the Ark of the Covenant of the Israelites supposedly kept there, the ancient rock churches with their manuscripts, is the center of the Orthodox faith: “If the truth doesn’t survive here, nowhere will.” When we finally make our way back, an eagle circles between the Almighty and us.

Those who want to worship the Almighty in the embattled Ethiopian province climb daringly to 2600 meters above sea level to a spectacular church in the middle of the rock. Our correspondent has dared the climb – and looked into secular abysses

The Almighty doesn’t exactly make things easy for his guests. After an hour’s climb up one of the craggy sandstone formations that rise into the sky like gigantic teeth in the center of Ethiopia’s Tigray Province, we reach a rock face that is impossible to get past except by climbing. Kiday Yohannes has wisely brought a rope with him to secure his foreign guest – he himself climbs ahead unsecured. The Orthodox clergyman knows every crevice where his hands or feet can find a foothold; after all, he has walked the path thousands of times – up to three times a day during the peak tourist season. However, the Orthodox priest has not seen any tourists for more than two years. Instead, he has seen war, countless soldiers and death many times.

Whoever dares to climb up here must not be sick of heights.

For climbing we have to take off our shoes, because the ground we enter is sacred. Even after the rock face, we continue uphill over boulders and tumbling gullies. Only at an altitude of about 2600 meters do we reach a ridge between two rocky outcrops on which there is a small brick building: the baptismal and reception room of the “Abuna Yemata” church, explains priest Kiday. On both sides of the ridge, the descent is hundreds of meters: not a place for the faint-hearted or those who suffer from altitude sickness – but a place where the Orthodox believers of the region have been seeking their God for 1600 years. In the “most dangerous church in the world,” according to a travel website.

The last 20 meters to a hole in the rock face are the most frightening. On the right, the sandstone massif rises vertically into the air; on the left, the abyss yawns – more than 300 meters deep. A ledge that serves as a path is barely 50 centimeters wide at its narrowest point. Priest Kiday takes his despondent foreign flock by the hand. In the entire history of the place of worship, no person has ever fallen here, he reassures, “God looks out for his faithful.” Legend has it that pilgrims who actually fell to the depths were blown back up the path by a miraculous wind.

❖ You can hardly get any closer to God 😇

When you finally reach the hole in the rock face, you think you are ready for anything – and yet the sight leaves you speechless. In the semi-darkness, a small cathedral accurately hewn out of the rock emerges – with Romanesque vaulted arches, columns and two implied domes. The walls and ceilings of the roughly 30-square-meter room are painted with luminous frescoes, mainly portraits of biblical and ecclesiastical figures, and the floor is carpeted. A bent branch fork serves as a lectern for the priest; a stack of ancient books made of sheepskin lies beneath it. There is a smell of incense – and as Kiday Yohannes quietly intones a hymn, the heavens seem to open. This is as close as a mortal can get to the Almighty.

The (almost) intrepid author.

Like over 120 other churches in Tigray, Abuna Yemata was hewn out of the rock. Unesco wants to declare the monolithic houses of worship a World Heritage Site. They are spread over three “Sacred Landscapes,” of which the Gar’alta region is the most spectacular; this is also where the oldest of the rock churches are located. What is hardly known in Europe: Christianity was already widespread in this part of Africa when the Germanic tribes were still worshipping trees and hills. King Esana, who ruled in the holy city of Axum, located almost 200 kilometers northwest of Abuna Yemata, had already declared the Christian faith the state religion in the 4th century.

Christians were also persecuted in Tigray

Nevertheless, the young Christians in Tigray could not really feel safe. Besides the proximity to God, the security aspect was also responsible for the construction of their churches at dizzying heights – an advantage of which Priest Kiday can still sing a song today. When Eritrean and Ethiopian soldiers invaded Tigray a good two years ago, the people of the village of Guh, located at the foot of the rocky fangs, sought refuge in the mountains. Priest Kiday retreated to the Abune Yemeta place of worship with two dozen worshippers. His 26-year-old wife Berhan holed up in a nearby cave with their two children – just in case the invaders did not back down from an attack on the place of worship.

The clergyman Kiday Yohannes reads in old books made of sheepskin.

Soldiers did indeed fire on the rock church several times, Kiday says, but they never hit it. And the Eritrean invaders were reluctant to attack on foot in view of the adverse terrain.

Other places of worship were less fortunate. Debre Dammo, the oldest Christian monastery south of the Sahara, was bombed by Eritrean military jets. Amharic militiamen set fire to the Feredashum St. Kirkos church – numerous artifacts were damaged. Ethiopian soldiers stole ancient manuscripts from the Abune Tadewos monastery, and when they captured the holy city of Axum in November 2020, their comrades from Eritrea inflicted a massacre with well over 400 dead, including several priests.

Places of worship also looted in civil war.

Up to 400 churches and monasteries were at least partially damaged, according to a damage report by philologist Hagos Abrha Abay, a researcher at the University of Hamburg. On auction platforms such as Ebay, old manuscripts and cult objects from Tigray were suddenly offered for sale at ridiculous prices, reports the Ethiopian: handwritten and illustrated texts of inestimable value changed hands for a few hundred euros.

While international organizations are investigating the countless human rights crimes committed during the civil war, virtually no one is paying attention to the destruction and looting of places of worship, complains Tadesse Simie Metekia of the Institute for Security Studies in Addis Ababa: “These are also war crimes.”

On May 7, 2021, Eritrean soldiers entered the village of Guh at the foot of the Rock Teeth and shot at anything that moved. According to farmer Kasa Girmai, 19 people were killed in the massacre, including nine women and seven children, the youngest less than a week old. The 50-year-old managed to escape with his family into the mountains. However, they had to leave his 78-year-old mother behind: The soldiers would not harm the old woman, Kasa told himself. But the Eritrean fighters dragged the woman out of her house, dragged her to a nearby stream and shot her there.

Even today, human bones can be found in the middle of the landscape, says priest Kiday: “The hyenas have spread the bones all over the country.” The priest buried the victims of the massacre in Guh in the valley about 300 meters directly below the entrance to the rock church – as if they were the first ones that the miraculous wind did not blow back up again. One of the graves is barely half a meter long: there lies buried the seven-day-old child. How could the Almighty allow the innocent little creature to be torn from the world right away?

Priest Kiday thinks for a while and then says that God punishes not only individuals but also the community – especially when the collective has sinned. That was certainly the case in Tigray, the priest adds: the people lied and stole, the girls wore skirts that were far too short, the young men danced too exuberantly. However, he does not want to justify the barbaric actions of the Eritrean soldiers: He calls their commander-in-chief, head of state Isaias Afwerki, “the father of the devil.

One cannot accuse Priest Kisay of exuberant dancing. When he intones a mournful melody in the mini-cathedral of Abuna Yemata between heaven and earth, he stamps his feet softly in time and accompanies his singing with a rattle. This is how he did it for the whole of last night, when he celebrated the first Christmas mass after the war again in the rock church for six hours with a good 50 faithful.

The Ethiopian multi-ethnic state threatens to be completely divided

Looking down on the congregation from the ceiling was Abuna Yemata: one of the nine saints of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church who had fled to Tigray from the Middle East in the fifth century. They had been at odds with the rest of the church over the nature of Christ – only God or God and man in one person? – with the rest of the church. Father Yemata hewed the place of worship out of the rock with his own hands, and his nephew Binyam painted the images, Kisay says. These have never had to be restored in their 1400-year history.

The apostate Christians could never be completely safe, even in the bizarre mountain world of Gar’alta: First they were persecuted by their “orthodox” fellow Christians, and later they were confronted with a new sect, the followers of the Islamic prophet Mohammed. Even though Ethiopia was never truly colonized, the Ethiopian kingdom did not come to rest even in recent history. And today, the multi-ethnic Ethiopian state is in danger of being completely pulverized by ethnic and political tensions.
Hundreds of thousands killed during the civil war

Several hundred thousand people are said to have fallen victim to the two-year civil war between the Tigray and the government army, and the province has been set back several decades. And already the next smoldering conflict is escalating-between the majority Oromo people and the government under “Nobel Peace Prize winner” Abiy Ahmed.

Ethiopia’s church seems powerless in the face of the turmoil. When Eritrea seceded from Ethiopia in 1993 and war broke out six years later between the two neighbors over the border demarcation in a useless piece of semi-desert, the community of Christians also split – into an Eritrean and an Ethiopian Orthodox Church. During the recent civil war, Orthodox believers outside Tigray did not lift a finger to stem the bloodshed or at least condemn it, laments philologist Hagos in Hamburg: Many parishes in Amhara Province, which is particularly hostile to Tigray, even donated money for the war.

A sacred place for the hope of peace

Kisay Yohannes closes his eyes and mumbles a prayer in Ge’ez: the sacred language of his church sounds like ancient Hebrew and is understood only by clergy. He prayed for Tigray’s independence, the priest says afterwards: and that an Orthodox Church for Tigray would soon emerge from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. For the priest, the province with the Holy City of Axum, the Ark of the Covenant of the Israelites supposedly kept there, the ancient rock churches with their manuscripts, is the center of the Orthodox faith: “If the truth doesn’t survive here, nowhere will.” When we finally make our way back, an eagle circles between the Almighty and us.

👉 Courtesy: The Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany

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Ireland TD: Countless Appeals to The Governments Of Ethiopia & Eritrea Have Proven Useless

“በኢትዮጵያ የትግራይ ክልል አደጋን ለማጉላት የአየርላንድ መንግስት እርምጃ መውሰድ አለበት” – ጆን ብሬዲ

“ለኢትዮጵያ እና ለኤርትራ መንግስታት ስፍር ቁጥር የሌላቸው ይግባኞች ፋይዳ እንደሌላቸው አሁን አንድ ደረጃ ላይ ነን።” 👍

Government Must Take Action To Highlight Plight Of Tigray Region Of Ethiopia – John Brady TD

“We are at a stage now that countless appeals to the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea have proven useless.

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Foreign Affairs and Defence John Brady TD has called on the Irish government to take strong and vocal action to mobilise both the EU and the UN, in order to address the emerging threat of famine and bring to an end the violence in Ethiopia.

The Wicklow TD said:

“We are five months into an emergency in the Tigray area of Ethiopia, where the list of ongoing human rights abuses and atrocities reads like a catalogue of horror.

“The Irish government needs to show leadership, by using its position on the UN Security Council to bring the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia to the consciousness of the international community to the degree that they can no longer ignore the horror of what is occurring on the ground there.

“Having contended with five months of mass killings, mass rapes, and widespread abuses, the civilian population of the Tigray region are facing huge food shortages.

“The World Peace Foundation has issued a warning that the humanitarian situation has deteriorated to the point that the Tigray region is facing into a pending famine.

“Alongside mass rape, starvation crimes are being committed on a large scale.

“To date the cacophony of international criticism has achieved little other than prompting the primary antagonists in the conflict to intensify their military offensive – before the international community acts.

“We are at a stage now that countless appeals to the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea have proven useless.

“Ireland must use the international standing that secured our country a position on the UNSC to become the voice that it promised to be for those who suffer.

“The government must make the international community sit up, listen, and act to end the suffering of the people of the Tigray region of Ethiopia.”

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#TigrayGenocide | More than 150,000 people Murdered by The Oromara Army of Ethiopia

✞✞✞ትግራይ የዘር ማጥፋት ወንጀል | ከ 150,000 በላይ ሰዎች በኢትዮጵያ የኦሮማራ ጦር ተገደሉ✞✞✞

የኢትዮጵያ እና የኤርትራ ወታደሮች እስካሁን ድረስ 10,500 የትግራይ ሴቶች እና ልጃገረዶችን ደፍረዋል። 😠😠😠 😢😢😢

More than 150,000 people have now died. Essential infrastructure – schools, hospitals, universities, factories – has been decimated. 😠😠😠 😢😢😢

💭 Ethiopia, Where The Past Is Threatening The Present

Every year for centuries, the festival of Mariam Tsion, Mary of Zion, has been held in Ackssum, the capital of an ancient kingdom of the same name. Worshippers, dressed in white robes, and accompanied by chanting and drumming, celebrate the saint day of the Holy Mother, the most important celebration of their faith, Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.

On 28 November last year, over a thousand gathered inside the church of Mariam Tsion after spending the previous night in prayer. They were aware that conflict had broken out in their region, Tigray, on 4 November, but they gathered nevertheless – and their prayers were soon interrupted by gunshots. Eritrean troops drove them outside and, in chaotic scenes, shot over 700 of them dead. Relatives were forbidden to bury the bodies, many of which became food for hyenas.

The celebrations are usually broadcast live on Ethiopian Televistion E T V. But this time, unsurprisingly, a recording of the previous year’s celebrations was aired.

Civilians have borne the brunt of hostilities in this war against Tigray. The massacre in Ackssum is one of many that have gone largely unnoticed in this age of social media – because, in the very early hours of 4 November, the Ethiopian government severed Tigray’s communication networks, and electricity and water supplies, before launching a military offensive. Communications were restored to the region’s capital Mekelle some weeks later, but the rest of Tigray is still without telecoms and basic utilities. Banks are still closed, most ransacked and robbed.

The incidence of rape in Tigray, very often gang rape, is off the scale. According to estimates, Ethiopian and Eritrean troops have so far raped 10,500 Tigrayan women and girls, but the UNFPA is currently recruiting sexual health workers for what it estimates will be 52,500 victims in a region with a population of six million. On 8 April, the US awarded additional humanitarian assistance of $152 million to Tigray, a good portion of which is designated for “safe houses and psychosocial support” for women and girls, some as young as eight, who have been raped, mutilated or tortured. A video shows a surgeon removing nails and other metal objects from the vagina of one victim who was raped by 23 Eritrean soldiers. A mother saw soldiers shoot her 12-year-old boy and was then raped. Eritrean soldiers say their orders are to “kill all men and boys above seven years old”.

Why such visceral cruelty? We can guess at an answer from what the perpetrators tell their victims: “You are worthless.” “We are here for revenge.” And, in the case of the Amhara militia, from the region of the same name to the south, “We are purifying your bloodline.” When the abused women are not killed, the aim seems to be to Amharise their offspring.

Western Tigray has already been handed over to the Amhara region. When Anthony Blinken, US secretary of state, designated the violence as ethnic cleansing, the central Ethiopian government hotly denied it. The government had likely promised Amhara expansionists that western Tigray would be handed over to them, just as, along the northern border, swathes of land have been handed over to the Eritrean government. The latter is already issuing Eritrean ID cards to Tigrayans and other ethnic groups such as the Kunama and Irob in eastern Tigray.

These are old enmities. There is widespread conflict across Ethiopia, but it is at its most extreme in the Tigray region – where it is, in part, about the ancient rivalry between the Amhara and Tigrayans, who have both furnished Ethiopia with emperors throughout the country’s long history. The Amharic culture and language has long been dominant across Ethiopia, but excludes the majority of Ethiopians.

The Eritrean government to the north – led by the unelected president of 30 years, Isaias Afwerki, who despises the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) – creates an additional danger. The TPLF led the government of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), which, with its then allies the Eritreans, ousted Ethiopia’s despotic Derg regime in 1991, facilitating independence from Ethiopia for Eritrea in 1994.

Hostilities erupted when Eritrean tanks invaded northern Tigray in May 1998, following a dispute over currencies. Around 100,000 people died in the resulting war. In the years since, training at Eritrea’s infamous Sawa Military Camp has brutalised recruits, breeding in them a deep hatred of Tigray.

Around the same time, Ethiopia, once a highly centralised state, became a federal democratic republic, with power devolved to the regions – a system highly suited to a vast country with religious, cultural, ethnic, linguistic and economic diversity. Multi-party elections were held in 1995, and the EPRDF won outright. The numerous nationalities were at last governed and taught in their own languages. This continued for 27 years.

What we are witnessing now is an attempt to reverse this process. The past is threatening the present.

During the EPRDF’s tenure, under Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the country achieved double-digit economic growth; massively increased access to health and education services; and expanded agricultural production, industrialisation and state infrastructure. The country was often mooted as a role model for the rest of Africa.

But from 2014, angered by political and economic marginalisation, students from the Oromo ethnic group launched protests that spread to other regions and eventually led to Abiy Ahmed becoming Prime Minister on 2 April 2018.

Abiy negotiated a peace agreement with Eritrea which was popular domestically and eventually earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. He launched a series of reforms and released political prisoners. Exiled leaders were invited to return. On a wave of popular support, on 1 December 2019, Abiy Ahmed dissolved the EPRDF coalition and merged its parties into the new Prosperity Party. The TPLF disapproved and withdrew to Tigray.

As prime minister, Abiy was a member of the Oromo section of the EPRDF. Oromos, who make up 40 per cent of the population, felt that they had at last found a champion. But the door was slammed in their face when the PM declared his intention to “return to the old glory of Ethiopia” – meaning Amhara domination and re-centralisation.

Abiy also began demonising Tigrayans, calling them “day-time hyenas”, scapegoating them for much that had gone wrong in Ethiopia. As a result, from mid-2018 many thousands of Tigrayans were attacked and even killed. Prominent Tigrayans were assassinated, as was the president of the Amhara region, who was then replaced by an ally of the prime minister. Hundreds of thousands of Tigrayans were dismissed from their jobs and the army and then placed in custody, many in camps.

In June 2020, the assassination of Hachalu Hundessa, a popular Oromo singer, triggered violent demonstrations. Officials from the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) were detained and its leader, Dawud Ibsa, is still in custody, along with most other opposition party leaders. A full military campaign began against the Oromo and, in Wollega and Guji provinces, the internet was cut off for six months to conceal the atrocities. People were burnt to death in their houses, their crops destroyed, women and children were raped – both Ethiopian and Eritrean troops were responsible, a precursor of what has happened since in Tigray.

And so it was that the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea began their joint military assault on Tigray on 4 November. Their troops were already making their way to Tigray when, on 2 November, Josep Borrell, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, called for “de-escalation”. The TPLF’s taking over of an Ethiopian army headquarters in Mekelle, often cited as the catalyst for hostilities, was instead a pre-emptive strike when the region was already threatened by large-scale troop advancements. Armed drones bombed Tigray from the UAE’s military base in Assab, Eritrea, destroying much of the TPLF’s heavy artillery, and mercenaries from Farmajo’s Somalia also joined the conflict.

For its part, the African Union, the continental body that groups 55 countries, has been powerless to intervene. Its offer to chair peace talks was accepted by Sahle-Work Zewde, Ethiopia’s president, in November last year, only for the proposal to be rejected by Prime Minister Abiy.

The UN Security Council has only discussed the conflict as a footnote and, in any case, any effective action is likely to be thwarted, given that Russia and China will block any vote. The Security Council has not even activated its resolution “condemning the starving of civilians as a weapon of war”.

Of course, the Trump administration turned a blind eye to what was happening in Tigray, despite copious evidence of war crimes. The election of Joe Biden has brought a change in US policy and demands are now being made for Eritrean forces to be withdrawn and for humanitarian aid workers to be given access.

The EU, to its credit, has withheld aid until access to the starving is allowed, but unless firmer action is taken many more will perish. Famine is looming. Will the world stand by and facilitate a repeat of 1984?

More than 150,000 people have now died. Essential infrastructure – schools, hospitals, universities, factories – has been decimated. The government expected that the intervention in Tigray would take “a few days, two weeks at the most,” but Abiy recently had to admit that Ethiopian troops are now fighting on eight separate fronts in Tigray alone and that he is “grateful to Eritrea” for all the military assistance it has given. Ethiopia’s army has a significant casualty toll of its own, so it is difficult to see how Eritrea can leave.

Ethiopian elections are slated for 5 June this year. In the circumstances, with the Electoral Board saying that five out of ten regions are not ready, there seems little prospect of any contests being free and fair. The vote would be improved, of course, if opposition party leaders and members were released from prison, and if the tens of thousands of other prisoners were also released, but that still wouldn’t leave much time for proper campaigning. Another postponement of the election may be the best option.

Besides, a different type of national conversation is more necessary at this point: all parties should come together and decide the future not just of Tigray and Oromia, but of the whole country. One Oromo commentator suggests that a referendum could be a central part of that dialogue – to help bring about a clear outcome. The people must decide, as they did during the writing of Ethiopia’s constitution in the early 1990s, when 36,000 groups debated what they wanted to be included.

One Amhara region resident, considering the possibility of Tigray becoming independent last month, stated simply, “But it cannot, it is the beginning of Ethiopia.” This demonstrates the pride that many Ethiopians have in their history, but it is also counsel for those who defend the old ways of dominance and subjugation. Ethiopia flourished in recent decades when the potential of all its peoples was allowed to unfold.

In any case, Ethiopia cannot go back to the past. Even if one side now “wins”, it is a victory that will leave a country scarred and thousands of people angry and bereaved – which is to say, not a victory at all.

Source

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Warmonger Abiy Ahmed – Kriegstreiber – Belicista Abiy Ahmed | የጦርነት አቀንቃኝ አብይ አህመድ

ዛሬ በአራት ቋንቋዎች ከቀጣዩ ቪዲዮ ጋር (ጃፓንኛ) አምስት ቋንቋዎች ሳቀርብ ከፍተኛ ጉልበት ነው የተሰማኝና፤ እግዚአብሔር የማቀርባቸውን መረጃዎች ሁሉ እንደ ጸሎት ይቁጠርልኝ። በግዕዝ ቋንቋ ቢሆንማ ምን ያህል ኃይለኛ በሆነ ነበር። ግዕዝ አልችልም ግን በግዕዝና በአማርኛ ጸሎት ሳደርስ ትልቅ ልዩነት እንዳለው ሁሌ ይታወቀኛል። የግዕዙ በጣም የተለየ ነው። ታዲያ አሁን ቢገባንም ባይገባንም በተለያዩ ቋንቋዎች፤ በተለይ በግዕዝ መስራትና ጸሎት ማድረስ ትልቅ ኃይል አለውና አረመኔውን የጦር ወንጀለኛ ግራኝ አብዮት አህመድና ጭፍሮቹ በእሳት እንዲጠራረጉ አባታችን አቡነ ገብረ መንፈስ ቅዱስ ይርዱን። አሜን!

🔥 የጦርነት አቀንቃኝ አብይ አህመድ

🔥 Warmonger Abiy Ahmed

🔥 Kriegstreiber Abiy Ahmed

🔥 Belicista Abiy Ahmed

👉 “የኢትዮጵያ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ዐቢይ አህመድ አንድ ሰው የኖቤል የሰላም ሽልማት ሊወሰድበት የሚገባበት ምሳሌ ነው፡፡“

👉 “Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is an example of why someone should be deprived of the Nobel Peace Prize.”

👉 „Äthiopiens Premier Abiy Ahmed ist ein Beispiel, warum einem Menschen der Friedensnobelpreis aberkannt werden müsste.„

👉 El primer ministro de Etiopía, Abiy Ahmed, es un ejemplo de por qué alguien debería ser privado del Premio Nobel de la Paz.”

“የአብይ አህመድ ፣ የኢሳያስ አፈወርቂ እና የአማሮች ጸረ–ትግራይ ህብረት (ኦሮማራ + ኢሳያስ) የማይነገር ሰቆቃ ወደ ትግራይ ክልል አምጥቷል ፣ ይህንም አብይ አህመድ ስፍር ቁጥር በሌላቸው ውሸቶች ለመሸፈን ሞክሮ ነበር።”

👉 “The anti-igray alliance of Abiy Ahmed, Isias Afewerki and Amharas brought unspeakable misery to the region, which Abiy tried to cover up with innumerable lies”

👉 “Das anti-Tigray Bündnis von Abiy Ahmed, Isias Afewerki und Amharas brachte unsägliches Elend über die Region, das Abiy durch unzählige Lügen zu verschleiern suchte.„

👉 „La alianza anti-Tigray de Abiy Ahmed, Isias Afewerki y Amharas trajo una miseria indescriptible a la región, que Abiy trató de encubrir con innumerables mentiras.„

💭 ፈረንጆቹ ሳይቀሩ በደንብ ገብቷቸዋል። ተመስገን! በግልጽ የሚታይ እኮ ነው። የሚያሳዝነው ግን ይህ በጭራሽ ንጹሕ ኢትዮጵያዊ ያልሆነ ሰነፍና ደካማ ትውልድ ለሃገሩና ለልጆቹ ሲል ግራኝ አብዮት አህመድ አሊን ግንባሩን ብሎ እንደመድፋት ይህን ክፉ፣ ቀጣፊ፣ አረመኔና ደም መጣጭ የጦር ወንጀለኛ እሹሩሩ እያለና ሕዝቡን እያስጨረሰ የኢትዮጵያ እና ተዋሕዶ ክርስትና ጠላት በምትሆነው የኦሮሚያ እስላማዊት ሪፐብሊክ ግንባታ ላይ ዛሬም እስክክስታ እየወረደ ሲተባበር መታየቱ ነው።

☆ አህመድ – ለውሸት የኖቤል ሽልማት

☆ Ahmed – Nobel Prize for Lies

☆ Ahmed – Nobelpreis für Lügen

☆ Ahmed – Premio Nobel de las Mentiras

🔥 የጦርነት አቀንቃኝ አብይ አህመድየኢትዮጵያ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ዐቢይ አህመድ አንድ ሰው የኖቤል የሰላም ሽልማት ሊወሰድበት የሚገባበት ምሳሌ ናቸው፡፡

💭 አስተያየት፦የኖቤል የሰላም ሽልማት አሸናፊ ሽልማቱን የተነተቀበት ወቅት በጭራሽ አልተከሰተም፤ ምናልባትም ለወደፊቱ ይህ አይሆንም፡፡ በዚህ ላይ የሽልማት ኮሚቴው አንድ ስህተት አምኖ መቀበል ያለበት መሆኑ እና መውጣትም ከእውቅናው የበለጠ አወዛጋቢ ሊሆን ይችላል፡፡ ከአንድ ዓመት ተኩል በፊት ሽልማቱ እንኳን አከራካሪ አልነበረም። የኢትዮጵያ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ዐብይ አሕመድ ጥሩ እጩ ለመሆን ሲበቃ፤ ጨቋኝ ስርዓትን አፍርሶና ከኤርትራ ጎረቤቱ ጋር ሰላም ፈጥሮ ለመኖር የሚሻ ሰላማዊ ሰው መስሏቸው ነበር፡፡ ገና በስልጣኑ መጀመሪያ ላይ መሆኑ ደግሞ ሌላ ጉርሻ ይመስል ነበር ፥ ተራማጅ የመሰለውን የመንግስት ሃላፊ በጀልባ ሸራዎች ላይ እንደተነፋ ነፋስ ነፉት / ፈንጂ አደረጉት፡፡ዛሬ ግን የከፋውን ነገር ተምረናል፡፡ ለካስ የቀድሞው ሚስጥራዊ አገልግሎት (ኢንሳ) መኮንን የነበረው አብይ አህመድ በግልፅ ጠላት ላይ ፥ በትግራይ ህዝብ ላይ ጦርነት በመክፈት እርምጃ ለመውሰድ ይቻለው ዘንድ ከአጎራባች አምባገነን መንግስት ከኤርትራ ጋር ሰላምን ሳይሆን የጦርነት ስምምነት ማድረጉ ነበር፡፡ ከኢሳያስ አፈወርቂና ከአማራዎች ጋር የፈጠረው የጦርነት ህብረት ሊቆጠር የማይችል መከራ ወደ ትግራይ አምጥቶለታል፤ ይህንም መከራ አብይ አህመድ ስፍር ቁጥር በሌላቸው ውሸቶች ለመሸፈን ሞክሮ ነበር ፡፡ ምንም እንኳን የኢትዮጵያ ሚስተር ሃይድ በታዋቂ ምክንያቶች ሽልማቱን መቼም መመለስ ባይኖርበትም በታሪክ መዝገብዎቻችን ውስጥ ግን እንደ የጦርነት አቀንቃኝ ይወርዳል እንጂ እንደ ኖቤል የሰላም ሽልማት ተሸላሚ አይሆንም፡፡

🔥 Deutsch – Kriegstreiber Abiy Ahmed

💭 Kommentar Von Frankfurter Rundschau

Äthiopiens Premier Abiy Ahmed ist ein Beispiel, warum einem Menschen der Friedensnobelpreis aberkannt werden müsste.

Es ist noch nie passiert und wird wohl auch künftig nicht vorkommen: Dass einem Friedensnobelpreisträger seine Auszeichnung aberkannt wird. Dagegen spricht schon, dass das Preiskomitee einen Fehler einräumen müsste – und dass die Aberkennung noch umstrittener als die Anerkennung werden könnte. Vor eineinhalb Jahren war die Auszeichnung nicht einmal umstritten. Äthiopiens Premier Abiy Ahmed schien ein ausgezeichneter Kandidat zu sein: Er hatte ein unterdrückerisches Regime zerlegt und mit den eritreischen Nachbarn Frieden geschlossen. Dass er gleich zu Beginn seiner Amtszeit ausgezeichnet wurde, schien ein weiterer Bonus zu sein: So wurde dem fortschrittlichen Regierungschef noch Wind in die Segel geblasen.

Inzwischen sind wir eines Schlechteren belehrt. Der Ex-Geheimdienstoffizier suchte den Frieden mit der benachbarten Diktatur offensichtlich nur, um besser gegen den gemeinsamen Erzfeind – die Bevölkerung der Tigrai-Provinz – vorgehen zu können. Das anti-Tigray Bündnis von Abiy Ahmed, Isias Afewerki und Amharas brachte unsägliches Elend über die Region, das Abiy durch unzählige Lügen zu verschleiern suchte. Auch wenn Äthiopiens Mr. Hyde seinen Preis aus den bekannten Gründen wohl nie zurückgeben muss: In unsere Annalen wird er als Kriegstreiber und nicht als Friedensnobelpreisträger eingehen.

Source

🔥 English – Warmonger Abiy Ahmed

💭 A comment by The German daily newspaper FrankfurterRundschau

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is an example of why someone should be deprived of the Nobel Peace Prize. The comment.

It has never happened and probably will not happen in the future: that a Nobel Peace Prize winner is stripped of his award. Against this, the fact that the award committee would have to admit a mistake – and that the withdrawal could become even more controversial than the recognition. A year and a half ago, the award wasn’t even controversial. Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed appeared to be an excellent candidate: he had dismantled an oppressive regime and made peace with his Eritrean neighbors. The fact that he was honored at the beginning of his term in office seemed to be another bonus: The progressive head of government was blown by the wind in the sails.

In the meantime we have learned worse. The ex-secret service officer was obviously only looking for peace with the neighboring dictatorship in order to be able to take better action against the common arch enemy the population of the Tigraii province. The alliance brought unspeakable misery to the region, which Abiy tried to cover up with innumerable lies. Even if Ethiopia’s Mr. Hyde never has to return his award for the well-known reasons: He will go down in our annals as a warmonger and not as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

🔥 Español – Belicista Abiy Ahmed

💭 Comentario de Frankfurter Rundschau

El primer ministro de Etiopía, Abiy Ahmed, es un ejemplo de por qué alguien debería ser privado del Premio Nobel de la Paz. El comentario.

Nunca ha sucedido y probablemente no sucederá en el futuro: que un premio Nobel de la Paz sea despojado de su galardón. En contra de esto, el hecho de que el comité de adjudicación tendría que admitir un error y que el retiro podría volverse aún más controvertido que el reconocimiento. Hace año y medio, el premio ni siquiera era controvertido. El primer ministro de Etiopía, Abiy Ahmed, parecía ser un excelente candidato: había desmantelado un régimen opresivo y había hecho las paces con sus vecinos eritreos. El hecho de que se le honrara justo al comienzo de su mandato parecía ser otra ventaja: el jefe de gobierno progresista fue arrastrado por los aires.

Mientras tanto, hemos aprendido cosas peores. El ex oficial de inteligencia obviamente solo buscaba la paz con la dictadura vecina para poder tomar mejores medidas contra el archienemigo común: la población de la provincia de Tigraii. La alianza trajo una miseria indescriptible a la región, que Abiy trató de encubrir con innumerables mentiras. Incluso si Mr. Hyde de Etiopía nunca tiene que devolver su premio por las razones bien conocidas: pasará a nuestros anales como un belicista y no como un premio Nobel de la Paz.

👉 “አምና ሉሲፈራውያኑ ከኦሮሞዎች ጋር በማበር ሰሜን ኢትዮጵያን በረሃብ ቆሏት ዛሬም ሊደግሙት ነው ግን ተክልዬ”

👉 የሚከተለው ከዚህ ቪዲዮ ጋር በተያያዘ ባለፈው ጥቅምት ወር መግቢያ ላይ የቀረበ ጽሑፍ እና ቪዲዮ። ሁሉም ነገር ሲከሰት ዓይናችን እያየው ነው፦

“የኖቤል ሰላም ሽልማት የጀነሳይድ ቀብድ ነው | ዘንድሮ ደግሞ በረሃብ ሊቀጡን ነው”

የተቋማቱን አርማዎች ልብ ብለን እንመልከታቸው!

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