The United Nations Human Rights Council will hold an urgent session on Ethiopia, amid reports of further atrocities in the Tigray region.

The Friday session, which was requested by the European Union, will decide whether to appoint an international team to investigate violations that human rights groups say may amount to war crimes.

The conflict in Tigray broke out in November last year, when the Ethiopian government sent troops into the region to put down the Tigray People’s Liberation Front - after its fighters captured federal military bases there.

Just last month the UN produced a 100-page report detailing major violations in Tigray, including the shelling of towns, killing of civilians, and widespread sexual violence.

This week Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch detailed further atrocities: mass detention, torture, and the forced displacement of large sections of the Tigrayan population.

UN aid agencies have limited access – many communities are reportedly on the verge of starvation.

The European Union says the UN Human Rights Council has a moral obligation to prevent further violations, and ensure justice for victims – member states want the council to appoint international investigators.

Ethiopia has dismissed the move as politically motivated.

(BBC)

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