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Ethiopia Military accused of using rape as war strategy

According to Amnesty International, the Ethiopian military and its allies are responsible for widespread sexual assault against women in Tigray, employing rape as a war strategy.


Image Credit: AFP

The human rights organisation said the degree of breaches committed during the nine-month fighting in the country's north amounted to war crimes.

A woman claimed that she was gang-raped in front of her children.


The charges have elicited no response from Ethiopian officials. According to Amnesty International, "overwhelming evidence" shows that sexual violence has been widespread since the beginning of the conflict.


It began last November, when the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the region's main political party, attacked a military installation after a disagreement with the prime minister over political changes.


The rights group questioned 63 Tigray women and children who claimed they had been raped by Ethiopian or Eritrean military or pro-government fighters from the neighbouring Amhara region's forces and militias.

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