Deputy U.N. chief deeply shaken by rape accounts in Ethiopia
February 12, 2022, 10:59 am

Deputy U.N. chief deeply shaken by rape accounts in Ethiopia

Ethiopia-Family yard/Pixabay

The National Post reported, citing Reuters, deputy U.N. Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said on Friday she was deeply shaken by accounts of rape from Ethiopian women, which she described as “your worst nightmare.”

Speaking to reporters in New York a day after returning from Ethiopia, Mohammed said she had been left near tears while hearing what the women had experienced, which included gang rape and rape in front of children.

She called for accountability for atrocities committed against women and recounted sights of famine in the crisis-torn country.

She said of the “incredibly emotional” visit: “In your worst nightmares you cannot imagine what has happened to the women in Ethiopia," adding that “It is going to be a lifelong healing process for many, many women and children in Ethiopia.”

War erupted in Ethiopia’s Tigray in November 2020, pitting the Ethiopian government and its allies, including Afar troops, against forces loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which controls the region.

All sides fighting in the war committed violations that may amount to war crimes, according to a joint investigation by the United Nations and Ethiopia published in November. The report accuses all sides of torturing and killing civilians, carrying out gang rapes and making arrests on the basis of ethnicity.

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“Everyone to blame … they were committed across the borders and regions,” Mohammed said on Friday. “Without a shadow of a doubt, justice and accountability has to be had.”

The government has said it has prosecuted individual soldiers, although it has provided no details, while the TPLF has said any soldiers found guilty would be punished.

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The conflict has also been compounded by drought, which has left several hundred thousand people in Tigray suffering famine. “I saw famine,” Mohammed said. “There’s clearly malnutrition, many, many diseases.”

Source: nationalpost

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.