The Ethiopian Army has displayed its combat drones a graduation ceremony for military pilots, according to images released by state television.
According to AFP, a drones expert tracking the conflict in Africa’s second most populous nation said the drones footage on Saturday was a Turkish Bayraktar TB2, and a Chinese-made Wing Loong 1.
The combat drones have been described as medium altitude, long-endurance (MALE), unnamed aerial vehicles capable of armed attacks.
The use of combat drones by the Ethiopian military is believed to have swung the Tigray war in their favour.
There have also been allegations of misuse of the drones especially in the killing of innocent Tigrayans through air strikes.
E”thiopia’s public demonstration of its armed drone capabilities is important as this could improve the accountability over their use,” Wim Zwijnenburg of the PAX peace organization in the Netherlands told AFP.
“International calls over transparency and accountability over the deployment of lethal force with armed drones in counter-insurgency operations are both aimed towards the government itself, after alleged civilian casualties of drones strikes, as well as the countries who sold them to Ethiopia, despite concerns over possible misuse.”
The civilian deaths from the Tigray war as a result of air strikes have been high and has been a source of concern to the world.