The head of the World Health Organization who is a Tigray citizen said on Wednesday that Eritrean troops “murdered” his uncle in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. Neither Ethiopian authority nor Eritrean government has responded to this claim
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, a former Ethiopian Minister and a citizen of Tigray has voiced out that his uncle was amongst many people killed by the Eritrean soldiers in the ongoing conflicts that involve Oromio and Amhara tribes.
In the closing minutes of a Geneva press briefing focused on COVID-19, Tedros said that he nearly cancelled the event because he was “not in good shape” after hearing of his uncle’s “murder”.
Mr. Ghebreyesus has been a strong vocal critic of Ethopia’s role in the conflict that has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions.
As at the time of filing in this report, Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel and Ethiopian authority did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations.
The Ethiopian government and regional forces from Tigray agreed in November to cease hostilities last month in a major breakthrough.
However, troops from Eritrea, to the north, and forces from the neighbouring Ethiopian region of Amhara, to the south, who fought alongside Ethiopia’s military in Tigray were not party to the ceasefire.
Eye witnesses as well as aid workers in the northern region told Reuters that despite the truce Eritrean forces have been looting towns, arresting and killing civilians in the towns they still control across the region.
