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having regard to its previous resolutions on Ethiopia,

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having regard to the statement of 9 November 2020 by High Representative / Vice-President Josep Borrell on the latest developments in Ethiopia,

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having regard to the joint statement of 12 November 2020 by High Representative / Vice-President Josep Borrell and Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič on Ethiopia,

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having regard to the statement of 19 November 2020 by Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič entitled ‘Tigray conflict: EU humanitarian support to Ethiopian refugees reaching Sudan’,

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having regard to the statement of 4 November 2020 by the UN Secretary-General,

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having regard to the statements of 6 and 13 November 2020 by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Tigray,

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having regard to the informal talks of 24 November 2020 in the UN Security Council on the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region,

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having regard to the situation report of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Ethiopia, released on 11 November 2020,

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having regard to the statement of 9 November 2020 by the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, on the situation in Ethiopia,

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having regard to the statement of 9 November 2020 by the Co-Presidents of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,

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having regard to the statement of 19 November 2020 by the EU Member States’ foreign affairs ministers,

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having regard to the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia adopted on 8 December 1994, and in particular the provisions of Chapter III on fundamental rights and freedoms, human rights and democratic rights,

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having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

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having regard to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights,

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having regard to the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance,

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having regard to the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

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having regard to the second revision of the Cotonou Agreement,

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having regard to Rules 144(5) and 132(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.

whereas the current armed conflict between the Federal Government of Ethiopia and the regional administration of Tigray, led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), has caused hundreds of civilian deaths and the mass displacement of people;

B.

whereas on 4 November 2020 the Ethiopian Government declared a state of emergency and launched military operations in the northern Tigray region the day after a reported attack by the TPLF against the federal government military base in the Tigray region; whereas since then there have been armed confrontations between federal forces (Federal Army, Amhara Region’s Special Police Force and Amhara local militia) on the one side and regional forces (Tigray Special Police Force and militia) loyal to the TPLF on the other;

C.

whereas the political divergence between the PP and the TPLF was further accentuated when the federal government postponed national elections, scheduled for May 2020, due to the COVID-19 crisis;

D.

whereas in September 2020 the TPLF-led Tigray regional administration held its own election, which was declared illegal by the Ethiopian Government since its term was supposed to end in September 2020; whereas the federal parliament deemed the electoral process in the Tigray region to be illegal; whereas Tigray’s leadership announced that it no longer recognised the federal administration or its laws; whereas on 3 November 2020 the federal parliament declared the TPLF a ‘terrorist group’;

E.

whereas on 8 November 2020 the TPLF approached the African Union to suggest talks, but the federal government ruled out any possibility of negotiations with the TPLF and rejected international calls for dialogue and mediation, arguing that the Tigray conflict is an internal matter that should not be internationalised; whereas the EU has offered its support in order to help de-escalate tensions, return to dialogue and secure the rule of law throughout Ethiopia;

F.

whereas in 2018 Abiy Ahmed achieved a historic peace deal with Eritrea, ending more than a decade-long suspension of diplomatic and commercial ties between the two countries; whereas the Abiy government took significant steps to free journalists and political prisoners, allow previously banned opposition groups to operate, and adopt new laws on civil society organisations and on countering terrorism; whereas the government has recently come under criticism due to the detention of opposition politicians; whereas concerns remain at the adoption of a new law aimed at curbing hate speech and disinformation, which may adversely affect freedom of expression;

G.

whereas some political groups linked to ethnic groups in Ethiopia that feel marginalised by Ethiopia’s federalist system of government allege that this system has resulted in ethnic favouritism and discrimination;

H.

whereas in June 2020 widespread violence broke out following the death of Hachalu Hundessa, a singer and activist from the Oromo region, with hundreds being killed and arrested; whereas on 1 November 2020 more than 50 Amhara people were killed in attacks on three villages which are being widely viewed as ethnically motivated and possibly carried out by the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), a breakaway militia from the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF);

I.

whereas, according to the National Amhara Movement, the Ethiopian authorities banned peaceful protests — against ethnically motivated killings — which were due to take place on 28 October 2020;

J.

whereas, according to international human rights organisations, there have been several incidents of indiscriminate killings of civilians in different parts of Tigray since the beginning of the conflict, including a massacre that took place on the night of 9 November 2020 in Mai-Kadra in the Tigray region, where the killing of hundreds of civilians could amount to war crimes;

K.

whereas, according to international human rights organisations, Tigrayan residents elsewhere in the country have been suspended from their jobs and prevented from flying externally; whereas there are reports of physical and digital surveillance, mass arbitrary arrests and detentions;

L.

whereas Tigray’s President confirmed that his forces had fired rockets targeting Eritrea’s Asmara airport;

M.

whereas the deadly fighting between the Ethiopian federal forces and the TPLF has raised international concern about the risks involved in intensifying existing security situations or sparking new ones in Ethiopia, which could have repercussions on neighbouring countries and potentially destabilise the entire Horn of Africa region; whereas Ethiopia has withdrawn troops from Somalia who were fighting Islamist insurgents; whereas the Kenyan authorities have scaled up security at the border with Ethiopia amid fears of escalating tensions;

N.

whereas the EU’s development cooperation with Ethiopia is one of the largest in the world amounting to EUR 815 million for the 2014-2020 period; whereas Ethiopia is also one of the major beneficiaries of the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, with over EUR 271,5 million for 2015-2019; whereas in 2020 the EU is providing EUR 44,29 million to humanitarian projects in Ethiopia by supporting the provision of live-saving assistance to internally displaced people uprooted by violence or natural hazards;

O.

whereas the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has demanded access to the Tigray region, which remains totally isolated (internet and telephone access have been cut off) since the beginning of the fighting; whereas, according to the UNHCR, the lack of electricity, telecommunications, access to fuel and cash limit any humanitarian aid response in Tigray and in the rest of Ethiopia, including tending to those wounded and killed in the fighting;

P.

whereas even before the fighting began there were 15,2 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in Ethiopia, 2 million of them in Tigray region; whereas the Tigray region is the fifth most populated region in Ethiopia with over 6 million people, and is home to 100 000 internally displaced people and 96 000 Eritrean refugees; whereas it has several important refugee camps in which, according to NGOs, 44 % of those living there are children;

Q.

whereas Ethiopia is a signatory to the Cotonou Agreement, Article 96 of which stipulates that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is an essential element of ACP-EU cooperation;

R.

whereas the fighting has caused thousands of deaths and injuries on both sides and has resulted in grave human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law; whereas, according to the UNHCR, as of 22 November 2020 over 38 500 refugees had fled the conflict and crossed the border into Sudan; whereas the UN has warned of a ‘large-scale humanitarian crisis’ and its agencies are planning for the possible arrival of 200 000 refugees over a six-month period; whereas the fighting is also causing the internal displacement of the population; whereas the UNHCR has already asked the two parties to the conflict to open corridors to allow people to leave and supplies to arrive at the same time; whereas international humanitarian organisations on the ground are ill-equipped and face shortages of supplies needed to treat newly arriving refugees and victims of violence; whereas the UN agencies are seeking USD 50 million in immediate funding which will go towards providing food and setting up new camps; whereas the European Commission is mobilising an initial EUR 4 million in emergency assistance to help support the displaced people arriving in Sudan;

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