The UN Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs visited Ethiopia’s Tigré region on Sunday.
The UN Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs visited Ethiopia’s Tigré region on Sunday, calling for greater access to aid to civilians amid mounting clashes between rebel and government forces.
During a visit to the capital of Tigré, Mekele, Martin Griffiths met with the “de facto authorities” of the region and insisted on “the need for humanitarian access and protection of civilians in all areas under their control,” according to a UN spokesperson.
Griffiths later returned to Addis Ababa.
Other sources said Griffiths met in Mekele with Olusegun Obasanjo, a senior African Union representative for the Horn of Africa, who was there to meet Debretsion Gebremichael, head of the Tigré Popular Liberation Front (TPLF).
The TPLF, which has long held power in Ethiopia, was overthrown by Abiy Ahmed, who became prime minister in 2018 amid anti-government protests.
Then Gebremichael retired to Tigré, the northernmost region of Ethiopia.
After months of tension, Abiy Ahmed, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019, sent the Ethiopian army to Tigré in November 2020 to remove the TPLF-backed regional authorities, who continued to challenge his authority.
Ahmed soon proclaimed victory, but in June TPLF fighters regained control of much of the area, before advancing into the adjoining Afar and Amhara regions.
Recently, the conflict has escalated again, with rebel forces advancing on Addis Ababa with the intention of overthrowing Ahmed.
Despite intense diplomatic activity, belligerents on both sides have not heeded the international community’s calls for a ceasefire. (I)
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