Addis Ababa, November 5, 2021 (FBC) – Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs had a meeting at his office on Friday with UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator H.E. Martin Griffiths.
Demeke briefed the UN official on the current status of the humanitarian situation in the northern part of the country.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister recalled the federal government’s efforts in providing humanitarian assistance during its presence in the Tigray region despite the destructive actions of the TPLF.
Following the government’s declaration of the Humanitarian Ceasefire last June, he said the ENDF withdrew from the region leaving significant food and non-food items behind being responsible for the wellbeing of the people of Tigray.
Despite such genuine efforts from the government side, the TPLF combatants had been, and still are, the main obstacles for the operation of humanitarian supply as proved in their unabated warmongering attitudes and destructive actions.
Also present at the meeting, the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) Commissioner, Mitiku Kassa, explained how the TPLF has continued to use humanitarian aid to augment its warring activities.
He reiterated that only 242 out of 1,142 vehicles have returned from Tigray, while the TPLF has continued to use the remaining trucks for military purposes.
Denouncing the misguided narratives from some corners regarding the humanitarian assistance situation in the country, Demeke called for a condemnation of the TPLF based on a candid assessment of the grave harm that the group has inflicted on the people of Ethiopia.
He called on humanitarian operators and the international community to give equal attention to the needs of affected people in the Amhara and Afar regions to that of the Tigray region.
Martin Griffiths, on his part, thanked the Deputy Prime Minister for the detailed briefing on the humanitarian situation in the northern part of the country.
He also said the humanitarian operation being undertaken so far in affected areas would not have been possible without the support of the Ethiopian government.
He finally underscored the need for cooperation among stakeholders to provide people in need of humanitarian aid with adequate supply.