Ethiopia says aid is on way to Tigray, rebels say no aid in sight

Tigray people of northern Ethiopia have been suffering due to lack of humanitarian aid access for months

Addis Getachew and Andrew Wasike |01.04.2022


ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia / NAIROBI, Kenya

The Ethiopian government on Friday said that some 21 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid are on their way to Tigray, the northernmost regional state affected by 16 months of armed conflict.

Ethiopia said that the consignment has been made available by the UN’s World Food Program, according to local broadcaster FANA.

On March 24, the Ethiopian government announced a humanitarian truce in its war against the Tigray rebels to facilitate the free flow of emergency humanitarian aid into the region.

The government also said it would allow for the scaling up of humanitarian flights to Tigray from two a week to daily.

Tigray rebels say government still blocking aid

The Tigray rebels who are in charge of the northern area have denied the announcement by the government that it would allow the flow of international aid to them.

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) claimed via its external office: "We are now in a fifth day since the 'truce' and no single aid truck came to Tigray. It is clear by each day that the deception is coordinated by the Addis regime. The world was quick to welcome the 'truce' but is now silent while there is huge troop buildup instead of aid."

The Tigray rebels and the government have been embroiled in an armed conflict since November 2020.

The TPLF have accused the Ethiopian government of foot-dragging in implementing the humanitarian truce it announced on March 24.

"… the Government of Tigray demands the provision of sufficient humanitarian assistance without any delay, and an end to the mendacious claims regarding the delivery of humanitarian aid into Tigray," read a statement released by the Tigray External Affairs Office.

The UN said the Tigray region "stands on the edge of a humanitarian disaster" with more than 40% of the region’s estimated 6 million people requiring emergency assistance due to the war.

The conflict spilled over to neighboring Amhara and Afar regional states, displacing hundreds of thousands and forcing 5 million people to depend on aid, according to aid groups' reports.

Thousands, mostly civilians, have been killed in the armed conflict, with the UN blaming both sides for the deaths.