UN warns of humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia

Food has run out for nearly 100,000 refugees from Eritrea in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, the United Nations said Tuesday. Fighting between the regional leaders and the federal government has cut the area off from aid for nearly a month. The conflict has displaced about 1 million people, many of whom fled to neighboring Sudan. The UN said 2 million in the region need assistance.

Is the conflict winding down? Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared victory over the weekend, but the fugitive regional leaders say they are still fighting. The Ethiopian military said the Tigrayan capital of Mekele is under its “full control” after last week’s offensive. The federal government and the regional leadership have disagreed about each other’s legitimacy since elections took place during the pandemic.

Dig deeper: Read Onize Ohikere’s report in World Tour detailing the background of the conflict.