[Aljazeera] A UN joint investigation into alleged atrocities in Ethiopia found all sides committed grave abuses that may amount to crimes against humanity and war crimes in the yearlong war in the Tigray region.OR it could just be a Cultural Thangâ„¢. Who are we to judge?
The report, a collaboration by the UN human rights office with the government-created Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), was released on Wednesday as the country enters a new state of emergency with rival Tigray forces threatening to advance on the capital, Addis Ababa.
More than 1,300 rapes were reported to authorities, with many more likely to have been unreported.
Michelle Bachelet, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said the Tigray conflict has been marked by "extreme brutality".
"Civilians in Tigray have been subjected to brutal violence and suffering," Bachelet said in a press conference on Wednesday.
"The joint investigation team has covered numerous violations and abuses including unlawful killings and extrajudicial executions, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, violations against refugees and forced displacement of civilians."
The majority of the violations documented between November 2020 and June "appear to have been committed by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces." The UN has since seen an increase in the number of reports of abuses by Tigrayan forces, as well as by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces.