By EFREM TESFAGABR
In the wake of one of the most brutal conflicts in recent African history, tens of thousands of Tigrayan women are stepping forward with stories of unimaginable horror.
The Ethiopian civil war, which erupted in November 2020 between the federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), has left in its wake not only death and displacement but also a silent battlefield: the bodies of women and girls.
As survivors come forward, the scale and nature of the violence is staggering. Medical professionals and human rights investigators have documented widespread use of rape as a weapon of war.
Women report being subjected to gang-rape by Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers, often over multiple days.
Survivors describe foreign objects—rusted nails, broken glass, nails, metal rods, and even melted plastic—being inserted into their vaginas and uteruses, leading to permanent physical and psychological trauma.
A 26-year-old survivor from Adigrat, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, told health workers:
“They said they wanted to destroy my Tigrayan womb so I would never give birth to another ‘rebel.’” Doctors removed shards of glass and twisted metal from her uterus.
These are not isolated incidents. A report by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch describes the sexual violence in Tigray as systematic, coordinated, and ethnically motivated. In some cases, victims were branded with ethnic slurs.
Others were kept as sexual slaves by soldiers in makeshift camps.
“Sexual violence was used deliberately to terrorize and humiliate the Tigrayan population,” said Dr. Aisha Mohammed, a trauma surgeon working with an international NGO in Mekelle.
“It was not about pleasure. It was a political weapon.”
Silence and Stigma
Despite the sheer scale, justice remains elusive. Ethiopia’s federal government has repeatedly denied widespread abuse and has obstructed investigations by international bodies, including the United Nations.
A UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia warned in 2022 that the scope of atrocities could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Yet, accountability remains stalled.
In Tigray, survivors face not only trauma but also a deeply embedded cultural stigma.
Many are ostracized by their communities or abandoned by their husbands. I
In some clinics, women wait silently for hours, unable to speak about what happened until coaxed gently by trained counselors.
“We are treating the wounds, but not healing the souls,” says Dr. Selam Tesfaye, a gynecologist at a clinic in Shire. “Many women are broken in ways that no surgery can fix.”
No Justice in Sight
Efforts to bring perpetrators to justice have largely failed. Eritrean troops, who played a central role in the violence, remain beyond the reach of Ethiopian law.
Even within Ethiopia, the few trials held have been criticized for their lack of transparency and political motivation.
The African Union has been notably silent, and while Western nations have expressed concern, tangible action has been minimal.
Sanctions have been imposed on select individuals, but no major tribunal or truth commission has been established.
“For justice to be meaningful, it must be survivor-centered, it must be local, and it must be swift,” says Letty Moges, an Ethiopian human rights lawyer based in Nairobi. “What we’re seeing is a deep failure on all those fronts.”
A Future Unwritten
There is resilience amid the ruins. Grassroots women’s groups in Tigray are documenting testimonies and pushing for reparations and legal reform. Some survivors are beginning to speak publicly, despite the risk. They are determined not to let their pain be forgotten.
But the road ahead is long.
The international community faces a moral crossroads.
With each passing day, evidence fades, trauma deepens, and the chance for justice grows fainter.
Unless urgent and coordinated action is taken—through prosecutions, reparations, and survivor support—Ethiopia risks burying yet another chapter of atrocity without reckoning.
Because these women deserve more than pity. They deserve justice.
