The Habesha: Latest Ethiopian News, Analysis and Articles

English French German Hebrew Swedish Spanish Italian Arabic Dutch

BBC’s Latest Deceptive Twaddle: “What a blind man’s death reveals”

The Queen of Sheba
February 3, 2021

 

BBC continues to peddle aggressive and subtle narratives, innuendos and incitements unfavorable to Ethiopia following the breakout of the Tigray conflict—and the crashing defeat of its cabal forces. Earlier on, at the height of the conflict it dedicated a column which often reported the cabal favorably. At one point, it was reported as expressing an apology, though this has not deterred it from its behavior.

In its latest piece entitled: “Ethiopia’s Tigray crisis: What a blind man’s death reveals” it duped the audience with an appealing, if not sympathetic, heading with a flimsy opening on the “blind man”. To be exact, the story is hardly about the fallen “blind man”, as only ten percent of the article is dedicated to him. The intention of the article is evidently meant to weaponize the disability of a man to launch some cheap shots on Ethiopia—yet again.

This piece focuses on these cheap shots to further unmask this media, which is sinking further in its antagonistic stance against Ethiopia. Oh yes, it appears that someone at the BBC was pushing this narrative to match one for Seyoum Mesfin cobbled up by a TPLF apologist, as I attempted to counter in a piece entitled: “The Late Seyoum Mesfin: A “Statesman” Abroad, A Fugitive at Home”.

 

The Military Operation

After abruptly ending the story of the “blind man” in four paragraphs, it schemes readers by denying the key—and critical—facts which triggered the Tigray conflict. It wrote “Ethiopia’s 44-year-old Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed – who ordered the military operation that ultimately led to their deaths – was a junior member of the TPLF-led coalition government until his rise to power in 2018.”

Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed did not order the operation that ultimately led to the demise of the cabal. He ordered the army to put down the violent, brutal and sadistic insurrection engineered by the cabal forces which in the process consumed this former “junior” fish and other bigger fishes.  It is very curious and deeply disturbing why this “global” media denies admitting what the perpetrators themselves openly declared in their televised bravado as “anticipatory self defence”.

The narrative is deliberately designed to smear Abiy for ordering a military operation, as if that operation was an option. Had the TPLF cabal got their way, the story from that part of the world would have been much more different, as I attempted to anticipate in my earlier piece: “Bullying Ethiopia into “Failed Statehood”: A Dangerous, but Futile, Adventure”.

 

Frail Bodies: Murderous Minds

The article went on to deceive. “How Asmelah [sic], Seyoum and Abay – all aged over 60 – died is unclear: some allege they were shot dead in cold blood, but the official Ethiopian version is that they were killed in a cave area after they refused to surrender.” One need to note the phrase “all aged over 60” in this brief statement; it was sinisterly designed to bolster blindness with old age for a heightened sympathy.

The greater part of the fabrication lies in its assertion that “some allege were shot dead in cold blood”. For sure, no one except the army in hot pursuit would be privy to this information and it is pretty startling how such a groundless “allegation” makes it on such a media outlet. To the contrary, the government has more stake in catching the cabal leaders alive than dead.

In another sustained effort to solicit sympathy, it continued to capitalize on human frailty. It went on: “You killed Asmelash, a blind man, Seyoum, who had back surgery and struggled to walk, Abay, who had heart surgery, and you humiliated Sebath [sic], who can’t walk up two stairs.” Naïve readers were meant to sympathize with these physically challenged old men, but murderous minds—who had the gusto to execute cold-blooded murders of hundreds and thousands of military personnel and civilians.

Just to be sure, no amount or kind of disease, frailty, disability or age saved the Nazi killers from being hunted down from all corners of the world. These killers, who perpetrated massacres on their OWN people, are no different—if not worse!

 

Ground Control:  Litmus Test Denial

Quoting aid agencies, without naming them, the story went on: “More than two million people are in need of aid” “which came amid the coronavirus pandemic and a locust infestation of crops – [which] had caused a “dire” situation”. The story, however, conveniently overlooked the 1.8 million in a safety net while under the iron fist of the cabal forces which misused and abused resources for building a bloated force while starving its own people.

The story also highlighted that “Only five out of 40 hospitals are accessible”. It again deliberately ignored the sole culprits who had looted and destroyed the hospitals and medical supplies. The recent capture of looted vehicles from the front, fully loaded with medical equipment, is yet another testimony, if this media cares to report.

Martin Plaut, the so called “fellow” who has a dedicated page on the Tigray conflict that hoards all kinds of made-up stories, and known to also openly incite violence, was also a subject of this story. In his futile attempt to resurrect the utterly vanquished TPLF cabal, he embarrassed himself when he brazenly denied the cardinal principle of war by stating “control of territory was not an indicator of who was winning.” There is no point in engaging this notorious TPLF apologist to whom I dedicated a piece already here.

 

A Fight: Not a Party

According to a recently released information by the Ethiopian Federal Prosecutor, the TPLF cabal mobilized over 170,000 militias and special forces. The TPLF cabal forces plotted to sprint to Addis Ababa by crashing anyone and anything which would stand on their way. These were meant to execute the putsch, but as fate had it, it ended up consuming the plotters, innocent foot soldiers and many, many more.

The TPLF cabal did not throw a party—it mounted a massive and grave attack that could have destabilized the entire Horn region. Suddenly, unfairly and sadly, the international community is cornering Ethiopia to clean up the mess which the cabal left behind. They are demanding Ethiopia to do where they have miserably failed in the world—many times.

One thing is for sure. No amount of external pressure would bring back the TPLF cabal to power. No amount of pressure would force Ethiopia to resuscitate a dead horse already decaying in the caves—from where it surfaced some four decades ago.

According to the US Department of Homeland Security, the TPLF, qualified “as a Tier III terrorist organization … on the basis of its violent activities before it became part of the ruling coalition and the government of Ethiopia in May 1991”. Post-2018, it reverted to its dirty, old and violent tricks which brought down its total demise.

Once a mob, (most) always a mob.

 

In Conclusion

Contemporary media houses and the social media have been abuzz with wrong, fabricated and manipulated stories on Ethiopia, since the outbreak of the conflict in Tigray.

By all account, the story of “What a blind man’s death reveals” is yet another deceptive piece from the BBC.

The Queen of Sheba may be reached at QueenOfSheba2020@outlook.com | @TheQueenofSheb5

 

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top