The war in Ethiopia continues: now a humanitarian crisis is looming

The war in Ethiopia continues: now a humanitarian crisis is looming

Due to the ongoing military offensive by the government of Ethiopia against the ruling party in the Tigray region, aid workers warn of a humanitarian catastrophe. “Tigray is isolated from all supply routes,” said the director of the country of Welthungerhilfe in Ethiopia, Matthias Späth, the German news agency. There are already at least 600,000 chronically malnourished people in the region of Northern Ethiopia; these – as well as the rest of the population there – are now unavailable to helpers. One can only speculate where the heavy fighting will take place and where auxiliary corridors might be set up, Späth said and stressed: Therefore, “we are assuming the worst.”

A week ago, after months of tensions with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the Ethiopian government launched an offensive against the rebel group and the ruling Tigray party. Little is known about the local situation, as internet and telephone connections are interrupted and, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), roads are blocked and the electricity supply has been cut.

According to UNHCR, 7,000 people have already fled to neighboring Sudan. “We assume that the great rivers flow from the Tigray to Amhara and Afar,” said Späth, referring to the two Ethiopian regions bordering the Tigray. Welthungerhilfe is trying to prepare for this by identifying reception camps, for example. According to the United Nations Emergency Aid Office, some 200,000 internally displaced persons and refugees still live in Tigray. According to Späth, Welthungerhilfe does not work directly in Tigray, but in the regions of Amhara and Afar. And Welthungerhilfe is networked with other organizations active in Tigray.

The TPLF was the dominant party in the coalition that ruled Ethiopia with a hard hand for more than 25 years. But when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018, he removed many old guard officials over the course of reforms and founded a new party without the TPLF. The TPLF and many people in Tigray do not feel represented by the central government and would like more autonomy. Under Abiy – who received the Nobel Peace Prize last year – ethnic conflicts have increased in the multi-ethnic state of Ethiopia with its approximately 112 million inhabitants. (aeg / sda / dpa)