Hawzen in the Tigray War

Events in Hawzen in the Tigray War included five mass extrajudicial killings that took place in Hawzen (Tigrinya: ሓውዜን) in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia during the Tigray War in November and December 2020 and January and February 2021,[1] looting and destruction Hawzen Primary Hospital by the Eritrean Defence Force (EDF),[2][3] and the establishment of a rape camp in the hospital by the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF).[4]

A dozen of civilians are buried in this grave in Hawzen – photo on 6 June 2021
November 2020 Hawzen massacre
Part of Tigray War
Hawzen
Hawzen
Location of Hawzen in Ethiopia
LocationHawzen (Tigrinya: ሓውዜን), Tigray Region, Ethiopia
Date25-27 November 2020
TargetTigrayans
Attack type
Deaths8 civilians
Perpetrators Ethiopian National Defence Force
Eritrean Defence Forces

Background
Surroundings of Hawzen

Typical massacres committed by Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers in the Tigray war are (1) revenge when they lose a battle; (2) to terrorise and extract information about whereabouts of TPLF leaders; (3) murder of suspected family members of Tigray Defence Forces (TDF) fighters; and (4) terrorising the Tigray society as a whole such as in case of mass killings in churches.[5]

Military events
6 June 2021, house destroyed in a battle in Hawzen

Hawzen, the capital of the woreda with the same name, in the Eastern zone of Tigray, is a small town with a few thousand inhabitants. Six incidents of heavy fighting and bombing took place from November 2020 to August 2021 during the Tigray War.[4]

Massacres

November 2020

From 25 to 27 November 2020, the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) killed 8 civilians in Hawzen (Eastern Tigray) .[1] In the wake of the battles, they organised a killing spree that spread towards the nearby small towns of Megab and Koraro.

December

The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) killed five civilians in Hawzen (Eastern Tigray) on 1 December 2020.[1]

The EDF carried out a massacre in Hawzen around 23 December 2020. Estimates range from eight[1] up to seventy people extrajudicially executed.[6]

January 2021

The ENDF and EDF killed thirty civilians in Hawzen on 23 January 2021.[1] The EHRC–OHCHR Tigray investigation reported the massacres in this locality, without going into further detail.[7]

February 2021

The ENDF and EDF killed eleven civilians in Hawzen from 8 to 14 February 2021.[1]

Perpetrators

Witnesses interpreted the identity of the late November perpetrators as Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers.[8]

Local residents identified the perpetrators of the late December massacre as mainly EDF, identified as Eritrean by cheek markings and pronunciation when speaking Tigrinya, and some ENDF and Amhara special forces.[6]

Victims

The "Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation" mentions approximately 8 victims in the late November 2020 massacre,[1] of which one has been identified.[8]

The Atlas lists five victims in the 1 December massacre and eight in the late December massacre.[1] Associated Press estimated seventy civilian victims of the late December massacre,[6] of which five have been identified.[8] All identified victims are above seventy years in age.

The Atlas estimates 30 victims in the 23 January 2021 massacre and 11 victims in the February massacre.[1]

Rape camp
See also: Sexual violence in the Tigray War and Wartime sexual violence § Rape camps

Hawzen Primary Hospital was looted and destroyed by the EDF.[2][3] The ENDF used the hospital as a military base several times. In one of the periods of ENDF military use of the hospital, the ENDF established the hospital as a rape camp, holding captive girls and women that they had brought with them into Hawzen. The beds normally meant for medical patients were used for the rapes. Methods used to prevent girls and women from escaping included tying them to the beds or locking doors.[4]

See also

References
  1. Annys, S., Vanden Bempt, T., Negash, E., De Sloover, L., Nyssen, J., 2021. Tigray: Atlas of the humanitarian situation
  2. Muhumuza, Rodney (2021-05-28). "'Our season': Eritrean troops kill, rape, loot in Tigray". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  3. "Eritreans commit atrocities in Tigray region". Africanews. 2021-05-28. Archived from the original on 2021-08-13. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  4. Mazurana, Dyan; Mekonen, Hayelom K.; Conley, Bridget; de Waal, Alex; Burns, Delia (2021-08-10). "What 'Rape as a Weapon of War' in Tigray Really Means". World Peace Foundation. Archived from the original on 2021-10-27. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  5. The World radio (2 April 2021): Counting the victims in Tigray
  6. Associated Press, 26 January 2021: Witnesses: Eritrean soldiers loot, kill in Ethiopia’s Tigray
  7. Tibebu, Israel (2021-11-03). "Report of the EHRC/OHCHR Joint Investigation into Alleged Violations of International Human Rights, Humanitarian and Refugee Law Committed by all Parties to the Conflict in the Tigray Region of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia" (PDF). EHRC, OHCHR. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  8. Tghat, A compilation of the verified list of civilian victims from different sources
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