HRW: With no check on abuses, 'civilians bear the brunt of wartime atrocities in Horn of Africa'

It behoves the international community to wake up and smell the coffee before the devastating effects of insecurity in the Horn of Africa spill over to other East African countries. [iStockphoto]

2023 was a consequential year for human rights suppression and wartime atrocities, especially in the Horn of Africa, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch published Thursday. The rights group blames regional blocs and the international community for not doing enough to protect civilians.

Governments in the Horn of Africa dealt with large-scale humanitarian crises in 2023. With no checks on abuses in Sudan and Ethiopia, civilians withstood the worst of atrocities committed in the name of war, the report by Human Rights Watch says.