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The Ethiopian thing was already a huge issue before the Ukraine war started. I have a friend whose parents from Tigray fled the country in August of 2021 as things had become horrific. Yet it wasn’t in the news at all and I wouldn’t have known a thing about it without the personal connection.
This is the best tl;dr I could make, original reduced by 92%. (I'm a bot)


The civil war in Ethiopia has resulted in the death of some 600,000 civilians, a staggering estimate for a conflict that has lasted only two years and has been focused on a single region, Tigray, of around six million inhabitants.
Placing a precise figure on the number of deaths caused by the war is difficult, as both sides tend to either exaggerate or play down fatalities.
Taking into account the estimated numbers, the war in Ethiopia is one of the deadliest of the 21st century.


Extended Summary | FAQ | Feedback | Top keywords: war^#1 Tigray^#2 death^#3 international^#4 conflict^#5 >

Why was there a civil war in the first place? It says the Tigray wanted independence but doesn’t say why.
I saw a protest about this in London and there were signs claiming the UAE had involvement. >

To summarize quickly, the Tigrayan party, the TPLF, used to rule over Ethiopia, along with some other ethnic parties. From 2018 onwards, this coalition broke down and Ethiopia went on a path of democratization, which culminated with Ahmed Abiy election as prime minister. He would win the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the conflict with Eritrea, but other ethnic groups, such as the Tigrayans, did not join his ruling coalition, mainly because Tigray, at the border with Eritrea, resented the peace plan.
in 2020 the TPLF went on to hold elections for the Tigray region, but Ahmed wanted to delay the elections because of COVID, pretty much indefinetly. TPLF went ahead with the vote anyway, and tensions soared. It's a bit unclear what happened, but it seemed Tigrayan militias attacked an Ethiopian Defence Forces (EDF) base. EDF invaded the region and quickly secured the capital, along with Eritrea which invaded from the north. After months of fighting, the EDF were broken by TPLF resistance who went on the march to the Ethiopian capital, having secured an alliance with other ethnic militias like the Oromo liberation army, but they were stopped before they could get there, and pretty much retreated into Tigrayan borders.
The hostilities between the EDF and TPLF are now pretty much over, but Eritrea still holds on to some tigrayan towns, the OLA is still a problem for the central government, and the war (and mostly the famine induced by it EDIT: the famine was mainly caused by a blockade from the federal government) have taken an absurdly massive toll on the country, mostly in Tigray.
If anyone has corrections/additions don't hesitate to correct me >

So the deaths are more from famine than the actual fighting itself? Non-combatants being starved to death en masse? >

It's a fairly similar situation to Yemen, with the government (or what's left of it at this point) and their allies (like Saudi Arabia) exerting a blockade over Houthi-controlled regions, which is slowly killing off hundreds of thousands of people through starvation & disease >

I don’t think I have the words to describe how truly awful that is. >

It's very human >

Humanity is not a friendly race overall. >

Made in gods image is a scary thought >

It’s an honest thought though. God, at least the biblical god is a resounding asshole with an fragile ego the size of the galaxy.
Ancient Israelis get bored and throw a party! 
God: “Wait a minute! You guys started using a godly dildo while I was out making laws for you?! Now go in a wasteland for 40 years until you all die of old age, hunger and disease! I will feed you mostly what’s necessary and WHEN i decide, and if anybody ever claims any degree of authority and independent thought EVER, I will ensure they die here too!” 
Ancient israelís: “But lord! The land we are going is already populated with normal looking people! Can we just go and say hello!? It’s been 40 years, we would like to just chill with someone for a bit” 
God: NOPE! “Look, this land is now yours, KILL EVERYONE EVEN THEIR CALF and pets everything!” 
Ancient Israelis: “Even the kids?” 
God: “did I stutter?”
Oh and This is the Abrahamic god being good to “its people!” >

Estimates by European institutions and academics say over half a million non-combatants have died during the Tigray conflict as a result of a government blockade that kept out humanitarian aid. >

And you 'haven't heard much about it' precisely because that was intentional. The Ethiopian government enforced an informational and humanitarian blockade to keep the world ignorant and/or unable to help.
This was a civil war, and the government wanted to make sure it stayed 'civil'... Just putting this out there before fingers of those responsible inevitably point outward. >

I don't think the Ethiopian government have that much influence to cause such silence.
Its more that western news outlets are focusing on the russo Ukraine war because of its close proximity. And people generally care more about things that are happening relatively close to them.