Ethiopia has initiated collaboration with Riyadh in a thorough investigation prompted by a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report that accuses Saudi border guards of purportedly carrying out migrant killings of Ethiopian nationals striving to enter the Gulf kingdom. The Ethiopian foreign ministry made this announcement on Tuesday.
In a statement released on X, formerly known as Twitter, the ministry affirmed, “The Government of Ethiopia will promptly investigate the incident (migrant killings)in tandem with the Saudi Authorities.” This announcement comes on the heels of the global outrage sparked by the release of the HRW report.
The allegations, which have been termed “unsubstantiated” by an undisclosed Saudi government official, point to a surge in human rights abuses along the perilous migration route from the Horn of Africa to Saudi Arabia— a place where hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians live and work.
The United States, a steadfast ally of Riyadh, has called for a thorough and transparent investigation into the migrant killings allegations. However, a Saudi government source, speaking to AFP, refuted the allegations.
“The allegations included in the Human Rights Watch report about Saudi border guards shooting Ethiopians while they were crossing the Saudi-Yemeni border are unfounded and not based on reliable sources,” stated the source, who requested anonymity.
Stephane Dujarric, a spokesperson for the United Nations, expressed deep concern about the report but acknowledged that verifying the allegations posed a considerable challenge.
The New York-based human rights organization has been documenting the plight of Ethiopian migrants in Saudi Arabia and Yemen for nearly a decade. Nevertheless, it contends that the recent migrant killings exhibit characteristics of being both widespread and systematic, possibly constituting crimes against humanity.
In the preceding year, UN experts raised disturbing allegations of cross-border artillery shelling and small-arms fire by Saudi Arabia security forces resulting in the deaths of approximately 430 migrants in southern Saudi Arabia and northern Yemen during the first four months of 2022.
In March of the same year, Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia initiated the repatriation of Ethiopian nationals under an agreement between the two nations. Ethiopia’s foreign ministry estimated that around 100,000 of its citizens would be returned home over several months.
