Scores and possibly hundreds off civilians have been stabbed and hacked to death in the northern Ethiopian region off TIGR eye witnesses say local forces fighting government troops in the region are to blame for the killings in make Hadera, but they so far deny carrying out the attacks.

The victims are thought to be day laborers not involved in the conflict.

Facilities flared last week after the government accused the Tigray People's Liberation Front off attacking a government military camp.

U.

N is warning off a humanitarian crisis as thousands flee to neighboring Sudan.

As we report, the stability of the whole region is feared to be at stake.

This'll is a country sliding into civil war.

These Ethiopians have come not to enjoy themselves but to give blood for their soldiers fighting In Tigre State, the main aim off the blood donation program is toe Express.

Our affection, our respect for our army.

The conflict is not with this program will not with the great people, not with the Tigray region.

It's rather with John Taboo, who have attacked our army in a shameful way through conflict erupted in early November 3 government sent troops into the region after an alleged attack by local forces on a federal army base and Tigres capital.

The federal government had every right to deploy federal security forces and use force in order to apprehend those implicated in massive corruption and gross human rights violations.

Relations between the Ethiopian prime minister and the Tigre People's Liberation Front have long been tense.

For nearly 30 years, the TPLF was dominant and Ethiopian politics, but Abby curbed the party's influence after coming to power in 2018.

Its leaders say they have been unfairly targeted.

Ah constitutional dispute raised tensions to boiling point.

The TPLF defied Abby's decision to postpone national polls due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In September, they went ahead with elections into gray, which they control.

Not only the stability of Ethiopia is its stake in this conflict.

The country, with its population of 110 million, is pivotal to the stability of the Horn of Africa is the whole.

In 2019, Abbey won a Nobel Peace Prize for his sweeping political reforms and his role in brokering peace with Eritrea after a bloody border war.

But so far he's failed to heed the calls of the U.

N.

And the African Union for a ceasefire in the conflict.

For more on this story, let's bring in some doubly.

He's with Amnesty International's crisis response team on Joins us from Berlin.

Some amnesty brought the news about degree uh, Tiger, a massacre to the world.

Getting information on the region is hard with phone lines and the Internet down.

How do you access and verify your information?

Yes, so very nice to be with you today.

We we first became aware off this massacre and my cadre in south in the southwest zone of Tigray region.

Um, two days ago, we started looking into images on eventually videos that started appearing on social media on took this very seriously A Z you rightly say it's It's been very hard to communicate with the region, so any information that has bean coming out of the region needs to be very carefully and very thoroughly checked.

We spent a good amount of time going through these videos, going through these photographs, making sure that they were.

They were taken captured recently, making sure that they weren't from previous events from from the region.

Um um to to really verify and to make sure we know what What had happened in my cadre on We couple that with with interviews off witnesses and people have spoken to eye witnesses from the Mikado region.

So we're very confident when we're saying that several 100 civilians were stabbed or hacked to death.

Um, in my cadre who did this were unsure Although people have told us that its members off the Tigray People's Liberation Front although we cannot independently confirm that Sam, your organization has also urged the Ethiopian government to restore communications and allow monitors to access the regions Are they actually responding?

S so far?

Not, But we're obviously always open thio communication.

We're very keen and we really do implore the authorities to restore all communication to drive.

This is essential t to ensure accountability and transparency for all operations on both sides of this of this conflict all the military operations in the region on also very key to ensuring that people can communicate with other in accordance with their right to freedom of expression.

But monitoring this situation is very important, Askew said in your report.

As you said in your introduction.

There are 1000 several 1000 refugees crossing the border into Sudan.

Uh, it's very key that the Ethiopian authorities ensure that on all sides that international humanitarian law and international human rights law is respected throughout this conflict.

Talking about that what, what is most urgently needed to support the many civilians now affected by this conflict?

I think it's key that the international community really presses Ethiopia to investigate not only what's happened in my cadre on the ninth of November on the 10th of November, but also that the international community presses Ethiopia to ensure all sides of the conflict protect civilians.

There'll be urgent need for assistance also over the border in Sudan, which I think the international community has to step up on DNA, make sure that the civilians crossing into that Sudan are provided for.

But really, I think, where the where the international community must intervene is read to press Ethiopia Ethiopian authorities to investigate what's going on on to ensure that international humanitarian law and international human rights law respected throughout cmw from Amnesty International's crisis response team.

Thanks for joining us here on DW news.

Thank you.

Well, let's go live to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, where journalists summer Our gratitude is standing by, uh, Samuel U N is now calling for a full inquiry into possible war crimes.

What has been confirmed so far?

What has been confirmed is that people are indeed dying.

Integrate, uh, with little attention given by us because we can't even go and report from the site.

Andi, Ethiopians are happy that the U.

N and even Amnesty International is coming abroad.

Uh and, uh, telling us exactly what we've been hearing for a long, long time on the U.

N.

Human rights commissioner is no stranger to Ethiopia having she's from Chile, grew up in the Pinochet era, and she knows exactly what war crimes looks like.

And this is what looks like to us some of that.

There are also reports that Ethiopian police gave the order off identifying ethnic take Ryan's from all government agencies and NGOs.

Does that mean that this is turning into an ethnic conflict that hasn't been confirmed?

So far?

We've heard rumors were checking.

Um, I know Reuters did report on it.

Uh, and the government is denying that's that's what's happening.

But we have to check.

We have to make sure that that's exactly what's happening.

But we also have to know this Ethnic conflicts in Ethiopia is nothing new.

Um, you know, minorities have bean attacked in the last, uh uh, since ah, a year ago.

And even Amnesty International.

This is a second report that it released within the month of November, saying that minorities are being attacked not just integrate, but in money, money, regions all across the country.

It this looks like at ethnic, uh, warfare from from From From what I see and what I hear within living in Ethiopia, uh, many civilians in the area are already relying on aid.

How badly could they be affect?

Affected by this well, you have to know that the Tigray region host refugees from Eritrea.

The state is a dependent.

Uh, it's an area where you can't even farm because that's you know, it za land that can be farmed.

So it relies on aid for money money off a good percentage of its population.

So we can only speculate in terms off the kinds of people that are being affected.

Even Transportacion taking food from other parts of Ethiopia and going to trigger.

It's not allowed.

So I'm sure people are suffering and famine is closer to a reality.

This is an area where it suffered because of famine some 30 years ago.

And this is like reliving what Ethiopia experienced a long time ago.

Is there also a risk?

You think that since this is turning into an ethnic kind of conflict, that other countries will be drawn into it?

Well, um, as I've been saying, Ethiopia is an important nation within the region.

So what happens in Ethiopia is certainly going to spillover to neighboring countries, South Sudan, being one of them, a country that has only known war since the day it got it is it's independence some nine years ago in Sudan.

Eso what happens in Ethiopia?

A smart as what happens in Sudan, uh, spills over to both countries.

So this isn't just an Ethiopian problem.

It might even extend thio Europe.

Uh, with all this migrants heading to European nations.

So it's going to be a huge disaster not just for the African continent, but for the world.

And that's why it needs to be taken really seriously.

Let me look at you in Addis Ababa.

Thank you very much for your input.

Thank you.