The Ethiopian government has announced that it will investigate allegations by the human rights organization Human Rights Watch – together with Saudi Arabia. Saudi border officials are said to have shot hundreds of people from Ethiopia.
In response to one publish report yesterday Ethiopia has announced that it wants to work with Saudi Arabia to get to the bottom of serious allegations by the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW). According to the HRW publication, Saudi Arabian border guards have shot dead hundreds of Ethiopian migrants at the border with Yemen since early 2022.
“The Ethiopian government will immediately investigate the incident together with the Saudi Arabian authorities,” the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry said on Twitter’s successor X. Until the investigation is complete, all “speculation” should be avoided, the post continues.
Witnesses report shooting border guards
The report in question had caused horror around the world. The Federal Foreign Office said it was “very concerned” and the US government called on Saudi Arabia to investigate the incidents. The EU welcomed the announced analysis. A Saudi Arabian government source had previously dismissed the allegations as “unfounded,” according to the AFP news agency.
Human Rights Watch based its publication on 38 interviews with witnesses, as well as satellite imagery and footage published on online networks. A 20-year-old witness from Ethiopia, for example, reported how Saudi Arabian border guards opened fire on a group of migrants who they immediately released from their custody. The bullets fell on the migrants “like rain”.
years documentations
Hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians work in Saudi Arabia. Many try to get to Saudi Arabia via the dangerous route via the Horn of Africa and the war-torn Yemen. According to HRW, the incidents occurred in large part after a ceasefire in Yemen came into effect in April 2022. Saudi Arabia is a war party in Yemen’s civil war.
According to HRW, it has been documenting abuse of Ethiopian migrants in Saudi Arabia and Yemen for almost a decade. However, the alleged recent killings appeared “widespread and systematic” and could constitute crimes against humanity, the human rights organization said.