The civil-war in Tigray began on the 4th of November 2020, and has created a significant humanitarian crisis marked by indiscriminate killings, ethnic cleansing and mass sexual violence. The conflict is between forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (T.P.F.L), an ethinc left-wing paramilitary and former political group, and the current Ethiopian government. So far, the conflict has seen more than 300,000 deaths and 2.5 million displaced persons.

Who is affected?
From 1991 to 2018, the TPLF led a four-party coalition that governed Ethiopia. Their reign ended in discontent and political protests which saw current Prime Minister ABiy Ahmed liberalise politics in the nation and set up the Progressive Party. Tigray’s leaders were unhappy with Mr Abiy’s attempts to centralise government and remove the existing federal system, which fuelled tensions that came to a head in September of 2020.

Tigray, the northernmost regional state of Ethiopia, held its own regional elections in defiance of the central government, which resulted in funding cuts to the region. In November 2020, the TPFL launched a strike against federal forces preparing to attack them from a neighbouring region. This prompted Mr Abiy to order a military operation against the Tigayan leadership, the catalyst for the current civil-war.

Why is this a health issue? 
Large, full-scaled civil-wars such as the one in Ethiopia bring significant burden to a country's health system. This is a consequence of the infrastructural damage and mass physical, mental and psychosocial health burden brought on by war. Basic necessities such as food and water have risen in cost by as much as 50% and 80% of essential medications are unavailable, leaving as many as 7 million people in need of humanitarian aid.

An estimated 3.5 million people have been displaced due to the conflict, including the refugees currently taking shelter in the country. This has resulted in a refugee crisis, with a reported 60,000 people so far having fled to eastern Sudan.

Human Rights Violations
Indiscriminate mass bombings and shellings of civilian areas including health facilities have been well-documented by human rights organisations. Over 256 documented mass-civilian massacres have occurred. These massacres have since been labelled as ethnic cleansing by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. 

There have also been reports detailing widespread weaponisation of severe sexual violence employed against Tigrayan women and girls, with the UN estimating 22,500 cases of sexual violence in the region as of April 2021. These horrific acts are accompanied by extreme violence and are being used to humiliate, stigmatise and degrade individuals based on their ethnicity.

What can you do to help?

1. Keep up to date with the situation in Tigray
2. Raise awareness about the Tigrayan conflict/human rights violations
3. Donate to organisations conducting humanitarian aid work in Ethiopia

Written by Mansimran Loyal (Reactive Advocacy, AGH 2022)

References
https://www.unrefugees.org/emergencies/ethiopia/ 
https://gh.bmj.com/content/bmjgh/6/11/e007328.full.pdf
https://www.nytimes.com/article/ethiopia-tigray-conflict-explained.html#link-65fde574
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-61009077 
https://www.worldvision.org/disaster-relief-news-stories/ethiopia-tigray-conflict-facts 
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/how-war-impacts-global-health/ 
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/apr/06/tigray-has-been-the-scene-of-ethnic-cleansing-say-human-rights-groups 
https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/06/crimes-against-humanity-and-ethnic-cleansing-ethiopias-western-tigray-zone#:~:text=In%20February%202022%2C%20Amnesty%20International,conflict's%20expansion%20in%20July%202021.