Tigray

 

Adi Daero: Did air attacks hit civilian targets in Tigray?

• By Peter Mwai
• BBC Reality Check

27 October 2022, 10:16 BST

Image caption,

Rescuers search for survivors amid the rubble

"I was watching television with my children when out of nowhere the airstrike hit and buried us."

At least eight people were reported to have died, with dozens injured in an air strike on the town of Adi Daero in Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray, in late September.

Adi Daero was close to the front line at that time between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), who control the region, and the Ethiopian military and Eritrean forces supporting them.

Access to the area for journalists is strictly limited, so we've tried to work out what happened using eyewitness testimony, video footage and satellite imagery of the area.

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What has been reported about the attack?

The TPLF say the Eritrean air force bombed a residential area in Adi Daero. They say it "dropped bombs... killing a number of civilians, injuring scores more and reducing residential homes to ashes".

A senior Tigrayan official, Kindeya Gebrehiwot, claims that an Eritrean MiG-29 jet was involved.

"When they came to dig us out I asked them to rescue the children first" said one woman in a report on a Tigray television station.

"My pregnant daughter Beyenesh was dragged out unconscious and bleeding. They told me my grandson Michiwti had died instantly."

The Ethiopian government has said its planes attacked the town, but insists it only hit military targets linked to the TPLF.

The pro-government Ethiopia Current Issues Fact Check has accused the TPLF of releasing "pre-drafted fallacious claims" that civilians were targeted.

Image caption,

On Twitter, the Ethiopian government says it carried out the airstrike

"Ethiopian National Defense Forces ensure that military assets are isolated from civilians before taking action," a statement on Twitter says.

Adi Daero: Did air attacks hit civilian targets in Tigray?

• By Peter Mwai
• BBC Reality Check

27 October 2022, 10:16 BST

Image caption,

Rescuers search for survivors amid the rubble

"I was watching television with my children when out of nowhere the airstrike hit and buried us."

At least eight people were reported to have died, with dozens injured in an air strike on the town of Adi Daero in Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray, in late September.

Adi Daero was close to the front line at that time between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), who control the region, and the Ethiopian military and Eritrean forces supporting them.

Access to the area for journalists is strictly limited, so we've tried to work out what happened using eyewitness testimony, video footage and satellite imagery of the area.

ADVERTISEMENT

What has been reported about the attack?

The TPLF say the Eritrean air force bombed a residential area in Adi Daero. They say it "dropped bombs... killing a number of civilians, injuring scores more and reducing residential homes to ashes".

A senior Tigrayan official, Kindeya Gebrehiwot, claims that an Eritrean MiG-29 jet was involved.

"When they came to dig us out I asked them to rescue the children first" said one woman in a report on a Tigray television station.

"My pregnant daughter Beyenesh was dragged out unconscious and bleeding. They told me my grandson Michiwti had died instantly."

The Ethiopian government has said its planes attacked the town, but insists it only hit military targets linked to the TPLF.

The pro-government Ethiopia Current Issues Fact Check has accused the TPLF of releasing "pre-drafted fallacious claims" that civilians were targeted.

Image caption,

On Twitter, the Ethiopian government says it carried out the airstrike

"Ethiopian National Defense Forces ensure that military assets are isolated from civilians before taking action," a statement on Twitter says.