Fighting words

US accuses Ethiopia of ‘crimes against humanity’ in warning to Abiy

By Julian Pecquet, in Washington

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Posted on March 21, 2023 10:06

© US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali within his visit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on March 15, 2023. (Photo by U.S. Department of State / Hando / ANADOLU AGENCY / Anadolu Agency via AFP) — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali within his visit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on March 15, 2023. (Photo by U.S. Department of State / Hando / ANADOLU AGENCY / Anadolu Agency via AFP)

The US on Monday formally accused Ethiopian and Eritrean forces of committing crimes against humanity in Tigray, raising the stakes on all sides to respect last fall’s ceasefire.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the announcement in tandem with the release of the State Department’s annual report on human rights around the world. He also accused Ethiopia and Eritrea, along with Tigrayan and Amhara militias, of war crimes in the two-year-long conflict in northern Ethiopia that ended with the November 2022 cessation of hostilities.

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