UN’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict says she is greatly concerned by allegations, including “a high number of alleged rapes” in Tigrayan capital Mekele, with evidence of abuse as a weapon of war coming in via the clinics.
Ethiopian soldiers arrested nine members of Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which led the region until being overthrown last year. The ongoing military campaign has left nearly 2.3 million people, or half of the population, in need of aid.
The latest explosions came just hours after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared victory in his government’s fighting against forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which runs the northern Tigray region bordering Eritrea.