Hunger Threatens Ethiopia's Tigray Region

Six months into the conflict in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, the specter of widespread hunger and starvation looms, as continued military operations and violence stall aid delivery and threaten the approaching planting season, according to the United Nations and several other observers. #Ethiopia is committed to rebuilding #Tigray and ensuring that citizens are sufficiently provided for while #rebuilding efforts are being exerted. We welcome the #international community’s support in efforts to scale up #HumanitarianAssistance and close existing gaps. 1/11

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which last week described the scale of food insecurity as “large and dire," said Wednesday that 5.2 million of the region’s roughly 6 million people needed food assistance. “Armed hostilities” and “blockades by military forces have in recent days severely impeded access in rural areas where humanitarian needs are most severe,” OCHA said in a news briefing. While noting “some positive news on Tigray’s humanitarian access," OCHA said the situation "remains fluid and unpredictable.”