It has been over a year since fighting began in the Tigray region, and more than 1.7 million people have been displaced as a result.
The impact of the conflict
The situation in Tigray, and now further afield in Afar and Amhara, is deeply concerning and this is a situation that we are having to communicate about very carefully. In recent weeks UN officials have been detained and UN aid drivers stopped. Earlier this year both MSF and the Norwegian Refugee Council had to withdraw. Ultimately the people who are left to suffer are those who need help the most.
Right now we have little, if any, communications with our three partners based in the Tigray region and this has been the case for many weeks. However, those we have heard from are safe and are doing all they can in extremely challenging circumstances, and at great personal risk, to support the most vulnerable.
In Afar, communication is much better and we are in regular contact with the Afar Pastoralist Development Association (APDA) who are working in communities which other aid agencies cannot reach. In some communities APDA report that they are now tackling famine conditions.
In Addis and across other regions of Ethiopia communication channels are open as normal and our partners there are able to continue their important programmes of work.
