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Washington, D.C. – House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul has released the following statement in support of the Biden Administration’s Executive Order providing for sanctions targeting people and entities responsible for perpetrating violence, blocking humanitarian access, and prolonging the conflict in Tigray.

“For months, our committee has called for an end to the fighting and gross atrocities occurring in Northern Ethiopia, and for the safe and unfettered access of humanitarian workers to assist these vulnerable communities. At this point, almost one million people are starving, and more reports are emerging detailing heinous accounts of rape, sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, torture, and discoveries of detention camps and mass graves. There must be accountability for these egregious acts and I support the Biden Administration’s new Executive Order. 

“I also urge the Biden Administration to finalize the determination on whether war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts of genocide have been carried out during this conflict, a determination which was supposedly imminent when Administration officials testified in front of our committee in June. This determination must be completed and made public without delay.”

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