(Bloomberg) -- A United Nations panel found that all sides in Ethiopia’s civil war have likely committed abuses such as extra-judicial killings and rape, and said a humanitarian crisis persists in the north of the country almost two years after the fighting erupted. 

“There are reasonable grounds to believe that violations, such as extra-judicial killings, rape, sexual violence and starvation of the civilian population as a method of warfare have been committed in Ethiopia since Nov. 3, 2020,” the three-member International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia, said in its first report published on Monday. “The commission finds reasonable grounds to believe that, in several instances, these violations amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.’

The fighting in Ethiopia has pitted Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s forces against soldiers loyal to the northern Tigray region’s ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front. While a truce was agreed in March, the conflict flared up again in August with both sides accusing each other of carrying out fresh attacks.

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The panel criticized the conduct of Ethiopia’s national army and its allies, comprising regional forces, militias and soldiers from neighboring Eritrea, as well as that of the Tigrayan forces.

“Sexual and gender-based violence, in particular rape, has been perpetrated on a staggering scale since armed conflict erupted,” the panel said. “While different communities have been affected, Tigrayan women and girls have been targeted with particular violence and brutality.”

The panel faced time and staffing constraints, and was denied access to a number of areas, meaning it had to conduct most of its interviews and investigations remotely. As a result, its report wasn’t an exhaustive record of what occurred. The Ethiopian and Eritrean authorities also didn’t respond to its questions prior to the submission of its report. 

Other key findings:

  • “The humanitarian situation in Tigray remains in crisis, largely due to shortages of food, medicine and fuel.”
  • “The commission is deeply troubled by its findings because they reflect profound polarization and hatred along ethnic lines in Ethiopia. This has created a disturbing cycle of extreme violence and retribution, which raises the imminent threat of further and more pronounced atrocity crimes.”
  • The panel recommended that the federal government ensure unfettered humanitarian access to Tigray, and that access to the Internet, telecommunications, electricity and banking services be restored in the region.
  • All warring parties should commit to negotiations to end the conflict and ensure that members of their forces who committed serious rights violations were bought to justice.

Legesse Tulu, the Ethiopian government’s communication minister, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The TPLF couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

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