Following decades of persecution and invasions by Eritrea, the Irob, a Catholic minority residing in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, found themselves ensnared in the Tigray War’s crossfire, spanning from 2020 to 2022. This conflict left many dead and displaced. Additionally, they endured a harsh and violent occupation by the Eritrean military. Now facing a crisis of internally displaced persons (IDP) and famine, the Irob people are on the brink of extinction.

The Irob, an ethnic group of about 50,000 people, primarily reside in Irobland within Ethiopia’s Tigray Region, with a smaller group living in neighboring Eritrea. They largely speak Saho, an Afroasiatic language distinct from Amharic, the federal government’s working language. Most Irob people are Catholic, while a minority follow Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity or Islam. Most are farmers. They possess a unique cultural identity and social structure based on clans. In Ethiopia, Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity prevails as the main religion, with Catholics constituting about 1% of the population. Within this Catholic minority, the Irob represent an even smaller segment. (For More, CLICK HERE!)