Ahungena Alemayehu
November 13, 2020
More than 500 unarmed civilians, mostly Amhara slaughtered.
MAYKADRA (Mai Kadra) is located in the North of Gondar, the North Western region of Ethiopia. Even though Maykadra’s surrounding region was an integral part of Gondar over the millennia, it had been forcefully annexed by the TPLF (Tigray People’s Liberation Front) decades ago, upon its victorious overthrow of the Derg. Following TPLF’s instigation of war with the central government by launching a surprise attack on the Ethiopian National Defense Force, Northern Division, the Federal Government responded with a counterattack. The TPLF was using the Special Forces of Tigray Federal Region and local militia that it built to a formidable force over the last two years since loosing power in Addis Ababa. It is reported that TPLF’s ground forces outnumber the national ground forces. By using Tigrayan turncoats inside the army, TPLF was able to liquidate the unsuspecting Northern Division. In this instance also, TPLF agents selectively massacred Amhara members of the defense forces. The Northern Division has been stationed in Tigray for more than two decades, defending Tigray from a possible attack from the north.
In the Maykadra region, bordering North Sudan, TPLF forces were defeated, being forced to flee from the area. Before they left though, in a premeditated night attack, they slaughtered all non-Tigrayan, mostly Amhara civilian and unarmed residents of the small town. Over 200 bodies were recovered, according to reports. People were stabbed with knives, choked with ropes, beheaded with axes, sliced with machetes, or cut-down with spades. Apparently, TPLF Special Forces were planning to use tractors to gather the bodies and dump them in a mass grave. They could not finish this task as the victorious army of volunteers and Amhara Special force closed in on them. Survivors of this genocidal attack on the Amhara reported that the killing was done by an organization called Samre that TPLF specifically organized for this purpose. Census data for the fake elections in Tigray were allegedly used to identify ethnicities of residents. There is a need for an independent investigation into this massacre.
The manner of killing (with sharp weapons) and the special unit organized for the purpose are both reminiscent of the Fascist Italian massacre in Addis Ababa. Axes and spades were the main weapons then and the special forces called the Chamisa Negra (Black Shirts) were the perpetrators. Both massacres were committed on unarmed civilians. No wonder the TPLF leaders are called grandsons of Banda (Ethiopian word for traitors/ Ascaris, Native mercenaries of Fascist Italy).
