U.S. accused of ignoring Ethiopia war crimes

Reports difficult to corroborate
For example, in the town of Labigah, 40 structures identified in a September 2005 image were gone in images taken in February 2008. In the Human Rights Watch report an eyewitness said the Ethiopian army "went into every village and set it on fire."

Such reports are nearly impossible to corroborate because the region "may well be the most isolated place on earth, save perhaps the densest parts of the Congolese or Amazon rain forests," Bromley said.

It is also difficult to tell what is going on in some villages, AAAS said.

"While some towns are considered permanent, they can grow and shrink over the course of a year due to fluctuations in nomadic populations, and many smaller villages will relocate altogether," the report reads.

"To ensure the most accurate results, AAAS for the most part sought to review only permanent towns in the Ogaden, as indicated by their location along a well-defined road and by the presence of square structures with metal-sheet or brick roofing, and most often including a mosque."

AAAS has used satellite images to support reports of widespread abuses in Myanmar, Zimbabwe, Burma, Chad and the Darfur region of Sudan.

Meanwhile, Simon said Ethiopia had no plans to investigate. "How can we investigate lies and innuendoes?," he said. "How can we try to disprove lies by investigating?"

Ethnic Somalis have been fighting in the Ogaden for more than a decade, seeking greater autonomy or an independent state. Somalia lost control of the region — the size of Britain and home to around 4 million people, in a war in 1977.

"The Ethiopian army's answer to the rebels has been to viciously attack civilians in the Ogaden," Gagnon said.

'Deafening silence' from Western governments
Ethiopia's military has been stretched in recent years. Thousands of soldiers are stationed in neighboring Somalia, propping up the government there and trying to quash a vicious Islamic insurgency. Ethiopian troops also are massing along the border with Eritrea amid signs of looming war.

Gagnon said Western governments and institutions give at least $2 billion in aid to Ethiopia every year. The "deafening silence" by the United States, Britain and the European Union, amounts to complicity in the crimes, she said.

"Influential states use many excuses, such as lack of information and strategic priorities, to downplay the grave human rights concerns in Somali Region (the Ogaden)," she said. "But crimes against humanity can't be swept under the carpet."

The report also said the army's tactics could be fueling a looming humanitarian crisis, brought on by a countrywide drought and skyrocketing global food prices. Because of the military campaign, the government has restricted humanitarian agencies and others from accessing the Ogaden at a time when some 4.5 million people are in need of emergency food aid.

Human Rights Watch said the Ogaden National Liberation Front also has violated humanitarian law by conducting the oil attack and by setting land mines along roads.

ONLF spokesman Abdirahaman Mahdi said the oil attack targeted soldiers guarding the area. The other victims were "caught in the crossfire," he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from London.

He added that the situation in the Ogaden is "a deliberate international connivance to annihilate our people."

More from msnbc.com When officials reject stimulus funds, sparks fly New Delhi's cowboys lasso loose bovines Cosmic Log: Gifts from the sixth dimension Looking for alien earths? Here they come Resume? Bah! Single tweet earns him a job Giving back for the holidays? Send us your pictures

MORE FROM AFRICA

Africa Section Front

Mugabe: Zimbabwe's unity govt has 'short life' Somali extremists go high-tech in attacks Uganda government outlaws female circumcision Group: Mugabe loyalists raped women during vote Kenyans battle for resources with guns and swords Africa Section Front   Add Africa headlines to your news reader: