Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Addis Standard2
Published on 2024-02-22 12:53:49
On February 19, 2024, a drone strike in the North Shewa zone of the Mojana Wedera district in a place known as Sasit resulted in the loss of a minimum of 30 lives and inflicted injuries on more than 10 individuals. The strike targeted an Isuzu truck transporting civilians, including members of a single family and other individuals. The attack followed clashes between the non-state militia, Fano, and the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) on February 18 and 19, 2024, at a location approximately 20 kilometers from Sasit, in an area known as Embuhyber.
A relative of the victims explained, “The attack occurred as more than 40 civilians were traveling in Isuzu vehicles, fleeing from an imminent conflict in the vicinity. It was at this precarious moment that the drone strike occurred.” The strike resulted in the deaths of several family members, including an infant who was only 80 days old and had been baptized the day before. Surprisingly, however, the infant and their grandmother survived the attack.
The eyewitness who approached the site of the drone strike encountered several deceased individuals and severely injured persons. Identification proved to be challenging due to the fragmented state of body parts scattered on the street. The injured were taken to Gawuna Clinic and Debre Brihan Hospital for treatment, with some succumbing to their injuries upon arrival.
The use of military drones in the ongoing conflict in the Amhara region has been reported on various occasions in the past. Witnesses have reported indiscriminate attacks that have caused widespread devastation to homes and infrastructure in the region. In November, the UN reported drone strikes by Ethiopian government forces, including on a school and a bus station, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 civilians, raising concerns about human rights abuses amidst ongoing clashes in Amhara.
Inghistoriquestill, 2023, Chief of Staff of the Ethiopian National Defense Force, admitted to using drones on human targets and vowed to continue the use of drones at extremist gatherings, cautioning the public to refrain from mingling with such gatherings.
The tragic loss of civilian lives and the destruction of vital infrastructures resulting from heavy artillery shelling and drone strikes in multiple districts in the Amhara region have brought the use of military drones in the conflict to public attention. The indiscriminate attacks have caused widespread destruction and raised concerns about human rights abuses amidst the ongoing clashes in the Amhara region.
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