The United States (US) on Friday imposed sanctions on the Eritrean military and the country’s ruling party for contributing to the ongoing crisis and conflict in Ethiopia reported Reuters.
The war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region has killed thousands and displaced more than 2.5 million people.
In a statement, the US Treasury Department said it was sanctioning the Eritrean Defence Forces and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki’s political party, the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice.
Sanctions also were issued against the head of the Eritrean national security office, the economic adviser of the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), Hidri Trust, which is the holding company of all the business enterprises of the PFDJ, and the Red Sea Trading Corporation, which manages its property and financial interests.
The sanctions come just a few days after the United Nations political chief Rosemary DiCarlo warned that Ethiopia is at the risk of descending into widening civil war.
The US Treasury said Eritrean forces have been responsible for stoking the conflict that erupted in the Tigray region in 2020.
“Eritrean forces have operated throughout Ethiopia during the conflict and have been responsible for massacres, looting, and sexual assaults,” it said in the statement.
Previously in August, Washington had imposed sanctions on General Filipos Woldeyohannes, EDF chief of staff, for serious human rights abuse by his forces in Tigray.
For months, the Ethiopian and Eritrean governments had denied the involvement of Eritreans in the conflict, contradicting testimony from residents, rights groups, aid workers, diplomats, and even some Ethiopian civilian and military officials.
The sanctions came nearly a month after US President Joe Biden signed an executive order authorizing punitive action against people and bodies contributing to the humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia.
