The Situation in of - The Facts

Factual report assembled by EDGET @ SV March 15, 2021

About EDGET at Silicon Valley (EDGET@SV) Ethiopian Diaspora Group EDGET@SV is a non-profit organization established in California by a group of Ethiopian Diaspora professionals with a mission to contribute to Ethiopia’s socio-economic development by bridging the gap; empowering, supporting, and engaging the Ethiopian community in the diaspora; and advocating for policies and practices that foster growth and economic development in Ethiopia.

This factsheet assembled from statements, reports, and press releases from Vision Ethiopia [6], Amnesty International[5], Media Reports and Ethiopian Government Sources.

The Situation in Tigray Region of Ethiopia – The Facts

On November 4, 2020, Special Forces and Militia organized by Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) launched a premeditated and unprovoked attack on garrisons of the Northern Command of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) in Tigray region.

A four-page confidential memo—signed by Achim Steiner, the administrator of the U.N. Development Program (UNDP)— points to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, Ethiopia’s former ruling political party, as provoking the Ethiopian government offensive by attacking and seizing Ethiopia’s Northern Command headquarters in Tigray in early November 2020, in what would have been an “act of war everywhere in the world, and one that typically triggers military response in defense of any nation,” according to the Feb. 16 memo, which was obtained by Foreign Policy [1].

The fact remains, after the treasonous act by TPLF against the Northern Command of the ENDF, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) government took a Law Enforcement Operation to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice and enforce law and order in the region. Within less than three weeks of time, ENDF swiftly completed the implementation of the Law Enforcement Order. Then, the FDRE government has taken steps to facilitate humanitarian assistance through full and unhindered humanitarian access while ensuring the safety and security of humanitarian personnel involved. This effort is still underway, and more progress is expected in the near future.

Over seven hundred innocent civilians were massacred by TPLF Militia and Cadres in the small town of Mai-Kadra alone as reported by Amnesty International Ethiopia: Investigation reveals evidence that scores of civilians were killed in massacre in Tigray state | Amnesty International[2]. The murderers, after committing this heinous crime, not only managed to escape to the neighboring country of as refugees but are also now used as the primary source of all the misinformation campaign to methodically fan and feed the Western media and sympathetic governments.

Our primary concern is the well-being of all Ethiopians, regardless of in which region people live. It is undeniable that the Law Enforcement Operation in Tigray may have had adverse consequences to many innocent citizens and caused humanitarian issues, and our hearts go out to these victims. The humanitarian assistance in Tigray requires our attention and the full support of the international community.

While the government of Ethiopia is fully focused and engaged its full effort in establishing peace and rebuilding the region, some International media continued to provide inconsistent and incomplete information. A lot is written about the aftermath, facts, and fiction, but little about the causes that led to this catastrophic result and the Ethiopian government's current efforts. The intended or unintended consequences of neglecting these facts could lead to rushing to judgment and taking an opposing stand to humanitarian and development efforts, which in the end will hurt the victims more and the entire country that is still battling poverty and instability. Furthermore, continued destabilization of Ethiopia will not

Page 2 of 8 only have disastrous impact to one of the most vulnerable regions in the world but also will lead to a catastrophe with major global consequences. Therefore, this document is prepared to give the readers factual and complete information about the situation in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

Brief background:

1. The TPLF ruled Ethiopia with an iron fist for over a quarter of a century under a banner of ethnic-based coalition. It invented and nurtured inter-ethnic animosity for its strategy of “divide-and-rule”. It carried out gross human rights violations including mass killings, arbitrary arrests, and torture to intimidate political opponents and the general public. TPLF atrocities and its brutal reign have been widely documented and reported.

2. The TPLF instituted ethnocentric policies where a certain section of the society wielded undue influence in government decision-making processes. This evolved into a state- sponsored rampant corruption to levels unheard of in the , in which billions of hard-earned public and foreign-aid monies were siphoned off to party and private coffers as well as illicitly flew outside of the country [3].

3. Years of sustained and deadly popular protests around the country forced the TPLF lose control of state power after 27 years of brutal reign. This momentous change ushered in a ray of hope with the new government leaders promising a transition to a democratic rule.

4. The TPLF leadership, instead of apologizing for its crimes and opting for a peaceful dialogue, continued to conspire its way back to power. It did everything in its power to undermine, frustrate and derail the government’s plans for transition into a democratic system. The aim was to destabilize Ethiopia and make it practically ungovernable by fueling public discontent and a lack of confidence in the ability of the government to guarantee law and order. The UNDP memo mentioned above paints a damning portrait of the TPLF leadership, characterizing it as an obstacle to the government’s reform agenda, while faulting foreign governments for failing to call the TPLF out over the past two years when their actions challenged the rule of Prime Minister .

5. In the face of all of these provocations, the FDRE government remained committed to peaceful resolution of differences and tried to bring the TPLF leaders to the table through several rounds of reconciliation attempts by a group of religious leaders and elders. The TPLF rebuffed all these efforts.

6. In September 2020, in violation of Ethiopian constitution and contempt for the authority of Ethiopian House of Federation, the TPLF conducted a regional election in which it won 98.2% seats out of 100%. It then declared the FDRE Government illegal and had no mandate to govern the country.

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7. On November 4, 2020, after preparing for several months, the Special Forces and Militia organized by TPLF launched a premeditated and unprovoked attack on garrisons of the Northern Command of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) in Tigray region. The deliberate and heinous attack on the Northern Command of the ENDF, is a crime of high treason under the Constitution and the laws of the land. With a mandate from the House of People’s Representatives to intervene, the Provisional Administration of Tigray was put in place, while the National Defense Forces were given the instruction to protect and defend the Constitutional order.

8. While the ENDF was enforcing law and order following the attack on the Northern Command, TPLF forces massacred over 700 innocent civilians in Mai-Kadra town on November 9, 2020. Investigators by Amnesty International and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission independently confirmed the carnage in their statements issued on November 12 and 24, 2020, respectively. The victims were apparently targeted for their Amhara ethnicity and were “in no way involved in the ongoing military offensive”. TPLF had also launched several rocket attacks to civilian centers in Bahir Dar and Gonder in Ethiopia and Asmara, Capital City of intended to inflict damages to civilians and infrastructures.

9. Thanks to the sacrifice and heroic action taken by the ENDF, TPLF is now history. Its leaders either arrested, fled, or died during the law enforcement operation. The much feared prolonged conflict, bloodbath, humanitarian crisis and regionalization and internationalization of the conflict have not materialized. Thanks in most part to the heroic efforts and actions taken by the FDRE government and ENDF.

The TPLF, having lost the unwinnable war that it had started, has predictably embarked on a major public relation offensive, thanks to the enormous amount of aid money the criminal organization had embezzled and illicitly transferred abroad while in power.

TPLF operators, some of whom are prominently planted in international organizations, humanitarian institutions and major news outlets, are using traditional and social media forums in a coordinated fashion to disseminate their disinformation and lies. Tragically, these operatives have so far been successful in befuddling the international community, as well as sympathetic governments and institutions, as they had effectively done so for over three decades of their tyrannical rule.

Equally troubling is the lack of balance in the coverage of the crisis in Tigray, whose root cause was the brazen and unprovoked attack by the TPLF on the ENDF. It is extremely disheartening and alarming to behold how major newspapers, humanitarian organizations and even the US State Department, conveniently and conspicuously omit crucial facts in their analysis of the current situation in the region. For example, in its issue of February 26, 2021, the New York Times unashamedly asserted that the government of Ethiopia “launched a surprise military offensive,” going to the extent of contradicting the statement issued by a TPLF spokesperson who had bragged about the lightening preemptive attack they carried out against the ENDF

Page 4 of 8 and statements and press briefings done by US State Department Officials [4]. The New York Times has yet to retract its erroneous reports or regret its misleading accounts!

With regards to hyped up and fabricated crisis in Tigray, the facts in the ground are as follows:

Humanitarian Crisis

The Federal Government of Ethiopia has taken a lead in providing humanitarian assistance for several months now with more than 84,000 metric tons, reaching 4.1 million beneficiaries in the Tigray Region. While the international community has been loudly proclaiming the need for assistance, partner support remains at 30% while the Federal government has covered the lion’s share of 70% assistance so far.

The Federal Government has also spent Birr 1.87 billion in humanitarian assistance to the Tigray region by reallocating spending from other priorities within its budget. Non-food items estimated at more than Birr 80 million have also been distributed in the region by the Federal government. Civil Society and Public Organization have been mobilized throughout the country to provide necessary humanitarian support for Tigray regional government and the population.

On humanitarian access, the Ethiopian Government announced unfettered access for humanitarian agencies at the end of February. Per further consultations held with UN agencies and other international organizations, amendments have been made on the modality of operations. Humanitarian agencies can operate in the region with unfettered access unhindered mobility, by simply providing a notification of operations to the Ministry of Peace, and at their own risk in region-wide movement.

Human Rights Situation

The Government of Ethiopia has also taken concrete steps to address human rights abuses that have occurred within the context of the conflict triggered by the TPLF. The first major human rights abuse and atrocity as aforementioned has been the atrocity committed in Mai- Kadra, resulting in the death of hundreds of civilians by youth organized, enabled, and assisted by the TPLF militia. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission has conducted a thorough investigation of the matter and has released its preliminary findings in a report. Furthermore, the Federal Police and federal prosecutors have also conducted a criminal investigation relating to the atrocities that have been committed in Humera and Mai-kadra. Based on this criminal investigation in which more than 250 witnesses have given their testimony, investigators have identified around 200 suspects. Although most of the suspects have fled to Sudan, 21 suspects have been apprehended and criminal charges will be pressed against them in the coming weeks.

In line with the government’s commitment to uphold rule of law and bring to account anyone who is responsible for committing such heinous crimes, federal investigators are conducting investigations in relation to other credible allegations of atrocities and serious human rights abuses in other parts of the region, including in Axum. The Ethiopian Human Rights

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Commission is also conducting its own independent investigation in relation to such incidents and allegations in other parts of the Tigray Region including Axum. The Commission has also expressed its willingness to collaborate with relevant UN agencies for the purpose of these investigations.

Foreign Forces

Contrary to widespread misleading media reports, there are no credible evidence that Eritrean forces were involved in the Law enforcement Operation undertaken by ENDF and currently in Tigray. As a sovereign country, the Ethiopian government has every right to deploy its local, regional, and national forces within its territory. Even though there is also no credible evidence that the Amhara state's regional militia is in Tigray, the call by the U.S. State Department and other organizations for the Amhara militia to withdraw from Tigray is ludicrous and inappropriate. The U.S. Department of State's statement as well as Secretary Antonio Blinken recent statement in Congress for the Amhara forces to withdraw is tantamount to calling, for example, the national guard of Maryland deployed to protect the U.S. Capitol to withdraw from Washington DC after the violent insurrection committed on January 6th. On the other hand, we expect the U.S. Government, the U.N., and the international community to condemn the unprovoked attack by TPLF and the invasion perpetrated by neighboring Sudan to take over territories that legitimately belong to Ethiopia. We denounce the Sudanese army's action and request the International Community to demand Sudanese forces' immediate withdrawal from Ethiopian territory and return to the negotiation table to resolve any border dispute Sudan has with Ethiopia amicably.

Media Access

The Federal Government has recently granted full access for international and local media to travel to and report from the Tigray region. As such so far eight international media are already active in the region.

Infrastructure Repairs

The region sustained heavy infrastructure damage by fleeing TPLF forces, resulting in telecom line, electricity, and transportation access disruptions.

Telecommunications: Video footage retrieved from Ethio-Telecom site shows perpetrators tampering with the data center equipment which led to telecom service interruption in early November 2020. Transmission lines and fiber optic cables were also damaged by TPLF militia retreating into the mountains, further cutting off the entire region from communication. Efforts by Ethio-Telecom and other stakeholders to repair damaged telecom infrastructure have resulted in 363 mobile sites been restored with mobile voice and fixed services actively running in more than 26 areas in the region.

Electricity: Transmission lines and conductors have also been tampered with and damaged by TPLF militia which resulted in an electricity blackout in the region. Ethiopian Electric Power undertook extensive technical audit of damages to 18 transmission as well as 17 power

Page 6 of 8 distribution centers lines in the North. Damages sustained are estimated at more than Birr 240 million with repair efforts underway.

Roads: Based on initial damage assessments undertaken by the Ethiopian Roads Authority in the Tigray region, specific places along 195kms of roads have been damaged by retreating TPLF militia since November 2020. Efforts to repair the damage has been initiated with an estimated budget of Birr 11million required to maintain damages caused by TPLF on public roads in the region.

Banking Services: Banking services have also become operational in many parts of the region, following disruption of services due to telecom infrastructure damages. With the resumption of fixed broadband service by Ethio-Telecom, most banks in the region have already resumed services, with the exception of a few that have sustained damages.

The people of Ethiopia are confident that history will judge those Western media, governments and institutions who stood on the side of a terrorist group that has afflicted immeasurable suffering and committed horrendous atrocities and crimes with impunity against innocent and defenseless civilians. Manifestly, the spiteful tactics pursued by the criminal TPLF organization include:

• Playing victim. They have deplorably used the atrocities they had committed on the Amhara people, as if they were the victims themselves. • False impersonation and misattribution. They present criminals as eyewitnesses or victims of crimes and re-enact fabricated acts of atrocities. In one such fabricated story, a TPLF operative who actually resides in Boston was videotaped pretending to be a priest in Axum [5]. • Regionalizing the crisis. The TPLF is raising arms and conspiring with neighboring countries to wage war against Ethiopia. In other cases, the TPLF flagrantly provoked neighboring countries, such as Eritrea, with missile attacks to draw them into the conflict. • Engaging high-profile lobbyists and freelance reporters. The TPLF operatives have effectively used the billions of dollars their leaders stashed away in foreign bank accounts to hire high-profile PR firms for the sole purpose of advancing their agenda of disinformation and influencing policy in the West. • Creating chaos, disruption and unrest in the Tigray region and the rest of the country. The TPLF agents have methodically destroyed infrastructure, committed heinous crimes in the region, and inflicted hardship on the people of Tigray for the objective of swaying public opinion against the law enforcement campaign waged by the government, Thus far, their wicked tactics and strategies appear to bear fruits, as evidenced by the recent reports of the US State Department, Amnesty International and major media outlets.

Contrary to the campaign of misinformation, the law-enforcement operation by Ethiopian government was neither a civil war nor an operation directed against the people of Tigray. The purpose was to fulfil its obligation and restore law and order in the region, to liberate the people of Tigray and the EDF officers from the bondage of the TPLF and, finally, to bring to

Page 7 of 8 justice the perpetrators of the attack on the Northern Command. The first two objectives have largely been accomplished.

The government has now started restoring public serve facilities that have been destroyed by the TPLF, mobilizing its resources to supply essential goods to the region and facilitating the work of humanitarian agencies to ensure that all humanitarian needs are addressed. The overall safety and well-being of the people of Tigray is of utmost importance to the government and the people of Ethiopia. The government and the people of Ethiopia will welcome all moral and material assistances for the rehabilitation of refugees and internally displaced people, as well as the re-construction efforts.

Once again, we want to emphasize that the TPLF, an organization which robbed, brutalized, and terrorized the Ethiopian people for more than a quarter of a century should be held accountable for its horrendous, treasonous crimes.

We hope this factual and complete information about the situations in the Tigray region of Ethiopia makes you pause and ask critical questions before accepting false information that Ethiopia's enemies readily fabricate.

References and Sources:

[1]https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/03/09/ethiopia-tigray-conflict-united-nations-undp- memo-atrocities-ethnic-cleansing-allegations/ [2]https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/11/ethiopia-investigation-reveals- evidence-that-scores-of-civilians-were-killed-in-massacre-in-tigray-state/ [3]https://gfintegrity.org/press-release/illicit-financial-outflows-ethiopia-nearly-doubled-2009- us3-26-bln-says-new-gfi-report/ [4]https://2017-2021.state.gov/briefing-with-assistant-secretary-for-african-affairs-tibor-p- nagy-and-u-s-ambassador-to-ethiopia-michael-a-raynor-on-the-situation-in-ethiopias- tigray-region/index.html [5]Amnesty Int’l Witness Not Priest but Imposter, Says Investigative Journalist | Ethiopian News Agency (ena.et) [6] Vision Ethiop recent press release: http://visionethiopia.org/press-release-on-continued- disinformation-campaign-against-ethiopia/

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