Ethiopia commission says Tigray youth group killed 600 civilians in Nov 9 attack

24 November 2020 - 15:22
By Reuters
Ethiopian refugees fleeing from the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, wait for food at the Um-Rakoba camp, on the Sudan-Ethiopia border, in the Al-Qadarif state, Sudan November 23, 2020.
Image: REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah Ethiopian refugees fleeing from the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, wait for food at the Um-Rakoba camp, on the Sudan-Ethiopia border, in the Al-Qadarif state, Sudan November 23, 2020.

A Tigrayan youth group stabbed, strangled, and bludgeoned to death at least 600 civilians with the collusion of local security forces during a massacre in the town of Mai Kadra, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission said on Tuesday.

The Nov. 9 attack was aimed at residents of non-Tigrayan origin, said the state-appointed commission. Reuters was not immediately able to verify the accounts because internet and phone connections to the region are down and access tightly controlled.

The Tigrayan forces' leaders could not immediately be reached for comment but have previously denied any responsibility for the massacre.