So is another member of the civilian militias, who is actually a carpenter. He was forced to join the war, he says, because TPLF rebels raped Amharic women, looted hospitals and schools and killed civilians.
I heard the same nine months ago in Tigray, where it is precisely Tigreeans who have been victims of violence by the Ethiopian army, troops from neighboring Eritrea and militias from Amhara. Human rights violations have also been committed there and anger at these events motivates especially young men and women to join the fight, but then on the side of the rebels. Thus the war swells and a cycle of violence ensues.
a lot of propaganda
In part, the civilian militias fighting on the government side also have their own agenda. They are mainly talking about the Amharic fight against Tigray and not so much about the Ethiopian. Because the Amhara region still has its own apple to pick with Tigray. For example, the two federal states do not agree on where the border runs between the two regions.
Earlier, a member of the Amharic regional parliament told Africa Report that the government’s failed attempt last year to quickly halt the advance of the TPLF in Amhara has also fueled mistrust of the central government. “One of the lessons we have learned is that we cannot rely on outside parties,” the politician said, referring to the Ethiopian military.
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