Dedebit Elementary School airstrike

Ethiopian Air Force

Company type	Military service branch
Industry	Military aviation
Headquarters	Addis Ababa , Ethiopia
Products	Air warfare, aerial operations

Template:Infobox civilian attack Template:Campaignbox Tigray war

During the night of 7 January 2022, coinciding with Ethiopian Christmas, the Ethiopian Air Force (ETAF) executed an air attack targeting a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) established within Dedebit Elementary School in Ethiopia’s Tigray Region. This assault resulted in the deaths of between 56 and 59 individuals, while injuring at least 30 others.

In the preceding month, following a failed joint offensive by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and allied forces aimed at reaching Addis Ababa, the TPLF withdrew its troops. Officials from the Ethiopian federal government claimed this diminished the TPLF’s ability to continue military operations. Although early January saw gestures towards a peaceful resolution of the ongoing Tigray war—including the release of several Tigrayan political detainees—the ETAF initiated a sequence of airstrikes across Tigray between 7 and 14 January. The most lethal strike occurred in Dedebit when a Bayraktar TB2 unmanned combat aerial vehicle released three bombs on the school converted into an IDP shelter. Survivors, humanitarian personnel, and investigators from organizations such as Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the United Nations (UN) confirmed that the site was not serving any military function.

The incident drew condemnation from both the TPLF and international observers. Investigations characterized the bombing as a war crime, emphasizing it as a deliberate and disproportionate breach of international laws protecting civilians during armed conflict. Following this event, humanitarian agencies operating nearby halted their missions, and displaced persons residing in Dedebit were relocated to other areas within Tigray. Neither Ethiopian authorities nor Turkey—the probable manufacturer of the TB2 drone—issued statements regarding the attack.

Tigray war

Main article: Tigray war

Further information: TDF–OLA joint offensive, ENDF National Unity Offensive, and 2021–2022 Ethiopian state of emergency

The conflict in Tigray erupted in early November 2020, involving the Ethiopian federal authorities, Eritrea, and the Amhara Region on one side, opposed by the TPLF, the ruling party of the Tigray Region. Following a phase of guerrilla resistance against forces allied with the government occupying Tigray, the TPLF regained control of Mekelle, the regional capital, in June 2021 and declared their intent to persist in combat, including possible offensives into Eritrea and Amhara regions if deemed necessary. Beginning in July, the TPLF initiated attacks targeting the Amhara and Afar Regions; by November, they allied with the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), launching a combined offensive aimed ultimately at capturing Addis Ababa and toppling the federal government.

After a counterattack by federal forces that halted this advance, the TPLF announced a withdrawal from Amhara and Afar regions on December 20, 2021. In reaction to this pullback, officials from the federal government assured that the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) would not penetrate further into Tigray beyond their existing positions. According to Government Communication Service minister Legesse Tulu, "the [TPLF]’s desire and ability [to engage in war] is severely destroyed."

Peace process

The airstrike occurred within a timeframe of approximately three months, spanning from the withdrawal of TPLF forces in December 2021 to the onset of a ceasefire initiated on 24 March 2022.

Prior to the airstrike, on 7 January, the Ethiopian government released several political detainees, including some affiliated with the TPLF such as co-founder Sebhat Nega and former president of the Tigray Region Abay Weldu. The Ethiopian administration publicly declared its commitment to peace efforts, with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed expressing his intention to pursue an "all-inclusive national dialogue" and emphasizing that "One of the moral obligations of a victor is mercy."

Following the airstrike, Teklay Gebremichael from Tghat conveyed to Al Jazeera English that the government's gesture was a strategic "ruse" aimed at appeasing international critics. He contended that despite Abiy's rhetoric promoting peace and dialogue, the government maintained its usual course of action.

Mass displacement

Following the Mai Kadra massacre, Tigrayan civilians were subjected to deliberate and organized retaliatory actions carried out by Ethiopian, Amhara, and Eritrean military units. By late November 2020, forces from the Amhara region had seized control over Tigray's Western Zone and engaged in serious human rights abuses targeting the local population, which included the forced removal of approximately 1.2 million individuals from the region by December 2021.

An internally displaced persons (IDP) camp was set up in Dedebit in November 2021; by the end of that month, official figures recorded 3,463 displaced individuals residing there. On 15 December, around 29,000 IDPs originating from the Western Zone relocated to North Western Tigray, with about 4,000 settling in Dedebit. Aid organizations reported that a significant portion of the camp's inhabitants were women and children. In the days preceding an airstrike on the camp, some residents observed a drone hovering over the area.

Airstrike

Map of Dedebit Elementary School showing the sequence of airstrikes.

Between January 7 and 14, the Ethiopian Air Force (ETAF) launched a series of aerial attacks targeting Tigrayan communities, resulting in at least 108 fatalities and 75 injuries overall. The most devastating of these strikes occurred on January 7, late at night between 11:00 pm and midnight East Africa Time (EAT), when a makeshift internally displaced persons (IDP) camp located at Dedebit Elementary School was bombed.

An armed drone deployed three laser-guided bombs at this location: the initial bomb struck the primary school building, puncturing the roof and killing most individuals within its blast radius; the second bomb exploded near the school's main gate outside the compound, causing additional casualties among those attempting to flee; the third bomb fell northeast of the first impact site but reportedly did not result in further deaths. One eyewitness described being abruptly awakened by the explosions, initially mistaking it for combat within the camp, but upon witnessing the mutilated bodies caused by the bombing, he understood it was not fighting.

The attack claimed between 56 and 59 lives. Injuries ranged from 30 to 46 individuals, although a medical official from a hospital in Mekelle suggested that the number of wounded could have been as high as 126. Among those killed immediately by the bombs were at least 53 people, including 15 children with the youngest victim being an infant of one year old; all victims were former inhabitants of Humera in Western Tigray. Three additional individuals who initially survived succumbed to their injuries later at Shire Suhul General Hospital. A survivor recounted that three families were wiped out by this strike. Aid workers and survivors highlighted challenges in determining precise death tolls due to the extreme destruction caused by the bombs, which left many victims either incinerated or dismembered beyond recognition, with one observer describing bodies as "fragmented like leaves," while human flesh was found hanging from nearby trees around the blast zones.

Investigations

Both Human Rights Watch and United Nations investigators found no proof that Dedebit was utilized for military objectives. Survivors of the strike consistently reported to investigators that they did not observe any soldiers or military hardware in the vicinity of the camp.

Bayraktar TB2 equipped with MAM-L munitions, similar to those deployed in the airstrike.

The drone involved in the attack is believed to have been acquired from Turkey, given that the ordnance used were MAM-Ls (smart micro munitions), exclusively compatible with the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drone. At the time of the incident, the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) was the sole combatant employing armed drones in the conflict. Open-source intelligence and media analysts identified Bahir Dar Airport in Amhara Region as the most probable launch site. Situated approximately 278 km (173 mi) south of Dedebit, this airbase was the only facility within range allowing a Bayraktar TB2 to deliver MAM-L bombs and return safely.

On 24 March 2022, Human Rights Watch urged the Ethiopian government to conduct a thorough investigation into the airstrike, labeling it a probable war crime. Later that year, in September, UN investigators from the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) echoed this assessment, concluding they had "reasonable grounds to believe that the ETAF committed war crimes," including the Dedebit airstrike. The commission highlighted the "surgical precision" of MAM-L munitions, which provide operators with "real-time surveillance" capabilities over their targets, and scrutinized the exact sites where both bombs were deployed. The ICHREE determined that Ethiopian forces breached both the precautionary and proportionality principles, deliberately launching an attack targeting civilians.

Aftermath

Those who survived the camp attack spent the remainder of the night sheltering in fields beyond the school premises. Video footage capturing the consequences of the airstrike was published by Tigrai TV, a media outlet linked to the TPLF. A priest is depicted sprinkling holy water on the deceased, while those who lived through the attack express audible grief. The victims were subsequently interred in a mass grave located near the town.

Following the airstrike, humanitarian organizations ceased their activities in the vicinity of the town on 9 January 2022 due to security risks. Similarly, on 20 January, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that approximately 5,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Dedebit were moved to Selekleka due to ongoing safety concerns.

Reactions

The TPLF spokesperson, Getachew Reda, denounced the airstrike as "Another callous drone attack by Abiy Ahmed," and voiced doubt regarding Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s peace overtures. On 9 January, a statement from the Tigray External Affairs Office condemned the bombing as emblematic of the Abiy administration's disregard for international law and urged global actors to hold forces allied with the federal government responsible.

Following the airstrike campaign between 7 and 14 January, UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed his sorrow over the plight facing Ethiopians and called for an immediate ceasefire. Liz Throssell, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), also condemned these attacks, emphasizing particular concern over the Dedebit bombing. She warned that disregarding principles such as distinction and proportionality could constitute war crimes. The European Union's High Representative Josep Borrell criticized the strike, acknowledging that although political prisoners' release was a positive step, "All parties must seize the moment to swiftly end the conflict and enter into dialogue." The United States' Bureau of African Affairs also denounced these bombings as "unacceptable," urging both an immediate ceasefire and unhindered humanitarian access to affected regions.

Neither the Turkish government nor Ethiopian authorities provided comments or responses regarding inquiries about the airstrike. In a BBC interview dated 30 January 2022, Legesse Tulu confirmed Ethiopia's deployment of armed drones but declined to disclose their origin and asserted that civilian populations were not targeted by drone operations.

See also

• Togoga airstrike (June 2021)
• Mekelle kindergarten airstrike (August 2022)
• Adi Daero school airstrike (October 2022), another strike targeting a school repurposed as an IDP camp later that year

Comparable international incidents:

• 1991 Amiriyah shelter bombing in Iraq
• 2019 Hass refugee camp bombing in Syria
• Attacks on Jabalia refugee camp (2023–present) located in the Gaza Strip
  • 31 October 2023 Jabalia refugee camp airstrike
• 2023 Laiza massacre in Myanmar, resulting from an airstrike on an internally displaced persons camp

References

Bibliography

• Report of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (Report). United Nations Digital Library. 5 October 2022.

External links

• International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia – United Nations