In the face of terrible civilian atrocities done to the Tigray people by the invading Ethiopian National Defense Force, Amhara militias, Eritrean military, and Somali mercenaries there are increasing reports of mercy and kindness given to their attackers by Christians and Muslims.
The city of Hawzen in peaceful times
The city and villages surrounding Hawzen have been the victim of attack first in 1988 at a market place where hundreds of civilians where massacred and again this Spring. The following is an eyewitness account (corrected for grammatically errors) of mercy in the face of horror:
“Last March near Hawzen there were joint offensive attacks against TDF by both Eritrean and Ethiopian forces with heavily mechanized army targeting civilians. The TDF waited them in a very strategic place to counterattack which caused the enemy to be dispersed. Some of the enemy soldiers were captured by farmers who had seen friends and family cut down by enemy fire while they was trying to hide themselves around their village. The farmers held them and the soldiers started to cry …one soldier said that they deserved even death punishment but he pleaded to the farmer to be taken and killed in front of the church in order to save his body from being consumed by vulture or hyena. But the farmers were with full of humanity and mercy, they gave food and taken to POW center with out any harm.”
Here is another account from a village near Mekelle”
“In wejerat ..it is just east of mekelle. One farmer is killed by Ethiopian soldier and immediately some the attacking soldiers captured and taken to to show to the victim’s family what the soldier had done. But the family of the victim told to TDF to not harm them …since they have a family like us ..we dont need a bad thing on them we need only a verdict from God”….
Tigray Defense Forces meet with representatives of a captured city in Amhara
In the attached picture TDF talks to gathered Amhara of a captured city to reassure them that their everyday life can continue under their local leaders.
Shows Ayder Hospital and the streets lining it where a brave protest occurred
How a community of different faiths and ethnicities came together to save their hospital, Ayder Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, in the city of Mekelle, Tigray region of Ethiopia in the face of a horrific invasion by Ethiopian National Defense and Eritrean forces. In the previous post I described the culmination of events that deterred the ransacking. Here I will tell the story of how it began.
I have gathered some more information on how the heroic unarmed resistance began to stop pilfering and ransacking of Ayder Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in Mekelle from the occupying Ethiopian National Defense Forces and Eritreans.
The Adishmdhun mosque where the muazzin made a call to action
Among the first to call citizens to action was the muazzin of the Adishmdhun Mosque. Although there was no electricity in the city using the mosque generator and microphone he called people to guard the hospital. The message was ” to all residents of Mekelle be Muslim, Christian, males or females : Ayder is being looted, so go and protect your hospital “. Immediately the people began to make the gatherings. There was was a group of motorcycle men who tended to gather at a pub just a few blocks from the hospital who began calling the same thing using a speaker. Youth groups and community elders answered the call. The demonstration and blocking of the roads was done with people of all faiths and different ethnicities.
The Nejashi mosque in Tigray was bombed and looted
The Muslim community would later hear about the desecration of the Nejashi mosque in Tigray by ENDF and Eritrean forces. This mosque is particularly significant as it was founded by the first followers of the Prophet Mohammed (Peace be upon him) who were given refuge in Ethiopia from the pagan Saudi rulers.
Throughout the occupation young men volunteered to patrol the streets around the hospital in defiance of the night time curfew pronounced by the ENDF and the Eritreans. Unfortunately some were shot and killed on sight. How many we do not know yet. Sometimes the body was just taken away so that relatives do not know what happened to them.
