Ethiopia: Concerns grow over missing Catholic bishop, priests, religious and Salesian missionaries

Bishop Tesfaselassie Medhin

Source: Fides

Concerns are growing over the safety of an Eastern rite Catholic bishop, his priests and religious, and a group of 25 Salesian missionaries.

Since the beginning of the fighting in the Tigray region on 4 November, there has been no reliable information about the fate of Catholic Bishop Tesfaselassie Medhin, his priests and around one hundred Eastern religious from the Eparchy of Adigrat. Local sources have told Fides concern is growing over the complete silence on the fate of 'Abune' Tesfaselassie.

The only indirect communication that can be attributed to the Bishop is a letter to church staff dating back to 23 November in which he refers to the difficult humanitarian situation in Tigray, where medicines, food, fuel and all essentials are lacking.

Last week it was reported that 25 Salesian missionaries are also trapped without communications in the Tigray region. "The situation is very tense, anything can happen at any moment and we have no information because everything is cut off, both the internet and the telephone," a Salesian from Addis Ababa told Fides.

He said the Salesians have four communities in Tigray and that "the last connection with one of the communities was ten days ago - with the others it was not possible - and they told us that essential goods were starting to run out, such as electricity. , petrol and food."

One of the missionaries is Fr Alfredo Roca, from Barcelona, who is 87 years old. "He has been here for many years, he arrived in the 1980s. He had already been against the communist government of Mengistu during the war and in the conflict against Eritrea, and unfortunately he has a lot of experience in these situations", says the Salesian commentator.

The 25 Salesians carry out evangelization and education activities in four communities in Adrigrat, Adwa, Mekelle and Shire - in the Tigray region - with schools, technical institutes and youth centers where they offer activities for the most deprived adolescents. They serve more than 5,000 children and young people and thousands of families.

The conflict in the northern Tigray region of Ethiopia has so far caused more than 50,000 to flee to Sudan. According to the United Nations, these could double by the end of December. Almost 900,000 people, mostly children under the age of 11, are already in critical condition.

Most lines of communication have been blocked, making it almost impossible to verify the accuracy of information provided by both sides. According to local sources, the Ethiopian army is currently in control of several cities near the border with Eritrea, including Dansha and Shire. Diplomats, regional security officials and humanitarian workers say fighting is spreading in the northwest of the country along the border with Sudan and Eritrea.

"The situation is spinning out of control with a frightening impact on civilians and there is an urgent need for external monitoring," said Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.