A man is next to members of his family who keep their twin nieces born during hostilities in Wukro, north of Mekele, on March 1.
Photographer: Eduardo Soteras / AFP / Getty Images
Photographer: Eduardo Soteras / AFP / Getty Images
The European Union plans to impose targeted sanctions on several individuals in Eritrea for their alleged role in human rights abuses and atrocities in northern Ethiopia, according to four people familiar with the matter.
The proposal will be made by the European Commission to member states in Brussels on Monday, people said, refusing to be identified because the information is not public. EU Foreign Minister Josep Borrell told reporters ahead of the meeting that the bloc plans to discuss “the framework for sanctions against human rights violations” in Ethiopia and Myanmar, and more details will be released later.
Both the EU and the United States have asked Eritrean troops to leave the Tigray region of Ethiopia after reports of looting, sexual violence, attacks on refugee camps and other human rights abuses. The US urged Europe to increase pressure on Ethiopia and Eritrea to slow the escalation of the conflict.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is currently in Brussels for talks with Borrell and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, people said.
Any proposal to impose sanctions on Eritreans would be “ridiculous”, Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel said by telephone. “I can’t see what is rational, even in terms of legality and morality.”
– With the help of Paul Richardson