“Numerous church buildings, clinics and schools in the Eparchy of Adigrat — many of them funded by CNEWA over the years — have been damaged and looted.” Medhin, and to assess firsthand the situation in his eparchy. Last December, there was widespread concern for the bishop as reports said he had not been seen in public since late November. Church officials later explained he and his priests had retreated to safety and were unable to communicate with the outside world due to the collapse of the communications network. “Except seeking God’s protection, what can be done?” the bishop told the delegation in January. He recounted “unspeakable intimidations, sufferings, refutations, frustrations and loneliness” that he, his clergy and people had faced, the delegation said. Numerous church buildings, clinics, schools and other church property in the eparchy — many of them funded by CNEWA over the years — were damaged and looted,
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namely in the towns of Adigrat, Edaga Hamus and Wukro. Other houses of worship were also damaged. Due to “security reasons and strict surveillance,” the delegation could not travel to areas where the damage was thought to be worse. The three CNEWA-funded educational institutions that were damaged include the minor seminary and Tsinseta Mariam Secondary School in Adigrat, and St. Mary’s College in Wukro. The latter is a skills training center for young people. Cardinal Berhaneyesus Souraphiel, C.M., metropolitan archbishop of the Ethiopian Catholic Church and president of the Ethiopian bishops’ conference, responded to the delegation’s report with an appeal for solidarity and for an international response to the grave humanitarian situation across the region. “Outbreak of conflict and war occurs when truth dies,” he said
in January. “Consequently, people suffer loss of life.” “Now is the time to respond to the atrocities, at least, to minimize further loss and human sufferings in the conflict-trodden area,” he added. The delegation estimated it would cost several millions of dollars to restore the various church properties within the Eparchy of Adigrat damaged during the height of the fighting. However, the needs of those displaced by the war are the primary concern of the Ethiopian Catholic Church at this time, including the need for food, potable water, shelter, primary health care, basic household items and psychosocial support for the “immense and unexplainable” atrocities that people have witnessed. The bishops estimated these urgent needs at almost $38 million, about a third of which has been
