Thousands of civilians are believed to have been killed since Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a military operation against leaders in the Tigray region. CNN had previously reported that soldiers from neighboring Eritrea perpetuated many of the extrajudicial killings, assaults and human rights abuses in the Tigray region.
“The United States is seriously concerned about the reported atrocities and the general deterioration in the situation in the Tigray region of Ethiopia,” Blinken said in a statement on Saturday.
“We strongly condemn the murders, forced removals and displacement, sexual assault and other extremely serious human rights violations and abuses committed by various parties, denounced by various organizations in Tigray.” He added that “those responsible for them must be held accountable.”
Witnesses told CNN that a group of Eritrean soldiers opened fire on the Maryam Dengelat church in the village of Dengelat, east of Tigray, on November 30, while hundreds of faithful celebrated the mass. Dozens of people died in three days of confusion, with soldiers massacring local residents, displaced people and pilgrims, they said.
Ethiopia responded to CNN’s request for comment with a statement that did not directly address the attack in Dengelat. Eritrea has not yet responded to a CNN request for comment.
Amnesty International accused in a report on Friday that Eritrean forces killed hundreds of unarmed civilians in the city of Axum in November through bombing and indiscriminate shooting and extrajudicial homicides, which the human rights organization said could constitute a crime against the humanity.
In his statement, Blinken acknowledged the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s commitment to allow humanitarian aid to the region, adding: “The international community needs to work collectively to ensure that these commitments are fulfilled.
“The immediate withdrawal of Eritrean forces and Amhara regional forces from Tigray are the essential first steps,” said Blinken, referring to forces from the Amhara state in Ethiopia, Tigray’s neighbor. “They must be accompanied by unilateral declarations of cessation of hostilities by all parties to the conflict and a commitment to allow free delivery of assistance to people in Tigray.”
Blinken said that the United States is committed to working with the international community to achieve these goals and that the United States Agency for International Development will send a disaster response team to Ethiopia.
“We ask international partners, especially the African Union and regional partners, to work with us to tackle the crisis in Tigray, including through actions at the UN and other relevant bodies,” he added.
After taking control of the main cities in Tigray in late November, Abiy declared victory and claimed that no civilians were injured in the offensive. Abiy also denied that Eritrean soldiers crossed over to Tigray to support Ethiopian forces.
CNN’s Barbara Arvanitidis, Nima Elbagir, Bethlehem Feleke, Eliza Mackintosh, Gianluca Mezzofiore and Katie Polglase contributed to this report.