Mr. Abiya and TPLF. Meanwhile, as tensions escalated, Mr Isaacs had the opportunity to settle old scores and re-introduce himself in the field, said Martin Platt, author of “Understanding Eritrea”, a senior research fellow at the University of London.
“It’s typical Isaiah,” Mr. Platt said. “He tries to manifest power in a way that is completely unimaginable for the leader of such small regions.”
Aid groups warn that, without immediate access, Tigre will soon face a humanitarian disaster. In an area already plagued by locusts and frequent droughts, war broke out just as the villagers were preparing to reap their crops.
Refugees are particularly vulnerable. According to the United Nations, 96,000 Eritrean refugees were in the Tigris at the beginning of the war, although some camps were evacuated. From December 12, the U.N. In an internal report, the Times saw the situation as “extremely dire” without food or water.
Far north of the Shimalba camp, Eritrean soldiers beat the refugees, tied their hands and left them under the sun all day, said Ephraim, a resident who later fled to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
“They poured milk on their bodies so that they would be filled with flies.” He said.
Later, Ephraim said, the troops surrounded 40 refugees and forced them to cross the border and return to Eritrea.
Declan Walsh reported to Simon Marks from Nairobi, Kenya and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Contributed a report from Washington, a Christian Tribert From New York.
