Ethiopia war: UN investigative Human rights commission debuts 6-day visit

Members of the UN International Commission of Human rights experts on Ethiopia arrived Monday in the Eastern African nation for a 6-day visit. It will be the Commission’s first visit to the ocuntry since it was established by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council in December 2021.

The International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to "conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into allegations of violations and abuses of international human rights law and violations of international humanitarian law and international refugee law in Ethiopia committed since 3 November 2020 by all parties to the conflict", a statement by the xx read.

The Commission’s three experts – Kenyan Kaari Betty Murungi (Chair), US' Steven Ratner, and Sri Lankan Radhika Coomaraswamy are supported by a Secretariat based in Entebbe, Uganda.

The Commission should interact with a wide range of interlocutors untill July 30. On the final day of their tour, the experts will issue a communiqué on their visit.

Ethiopia is facing a major humanitarian crisis due to the cumulative effects of conflicts - including the one that broke out in the northern region of Tigray in November 2020 - and unprecedented drought in several regions.

It is believed that more than 400,000 people have been displaced by the conflict in Tigray.