The Ethiopian government announced Tuesday, August 22, that it would conduct a joint investigation with Saudi Arabia, after the publication the day before of a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) accusing Saudi border guards of killing “hundreds” of Ethiopian migrants between March 2022 and June 2023.
“The Ethiopian government will promptly investigate the incident in collaboration with the Saudi authorities,” the foreign ministry said in a statement posted on social network X (formerly Twitter).
“At this critical juncture, it is strongly advised to exercise utmost restraint and refrain from making unnecessary statements until the investigation is complete,” the ministry added, assuring that “both countries, despite this unfortunate tragedy, enjoy a long and excellent relationship”.
In its report, the NGO claims that Saudi border guards killed “hundreds” of Ethiopian migrants trying to enter the wealthy Gulf monarchy via the border with Yemen between March 2022 and June 2023.
For the UN, a “very disturbing” report
The Saudi authorities dispute the facts reported by the NGO. A government source told Agence France-Presse that these are “unfounded and not based on reliable sources”.
The United States, a longtime partner of the Gulf monarchy, has also called for an investigation. “We have raised our concerns about these allegations with the Saudi government,” a State Department spokesperson said. “We call on the Saudi authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation and to respect their obligations under international law,” he added.
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, also found the HRW report “very worrying”. “I know that our human rights office is aware of the situation and has had contacts [on the spot], but it is very difficult for them to confirm the situation at the border,” he said.
The report is based on interviews with thirty-eight Ethiopian migrants who attempted to cross into Saudi Arabia via Yemen, satellite images, videos and photos posted on social media “or collected from other sources”. .
“They were shooting at us, it was like rain”
Interviewees spoke of “explosive weapons” and point-blank shooting, with Saudi border guards asking Ethiopians “what part of their body they would prefer to be shot at.” These migrants recount scenes of horror: “Women, men and children scattered in the mountainous landscape, seriously injured, dismembered or already dead”, reports HRW.
“They were shooting at us, it was like a rain” of bullets, testifies a 20-year-old woman from the Ethiopian region of Oromia, quoted by the NGO. “I saw a man calling for help, he had lost both his legs,” but, she says, “we couldn’t help him because we were running for our own lives.” .
HRW calls on Riyadh to “immediately cease” the use of lethal force against migrants and asylum seekers, urging the UN to investigate the allegations.
Hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians work in Saudi Arabia, sometimes taking the “eastern route” from the Horn of Africa to the Gulf, passing through Yemen, a poor country at war for more than eight years.