Ethiopia: concerns after the disappearance of 20,000 refugees in Tigray

As many as 20,000 refugees are reported missing after the destruction of two camps in Ethiopia's war-ravaged Tigray region. The refugees, most of them from neighboring Eritrea, fled shelters in Hitsats and Shimelba which were destroyed in fighting that erupted in Tigray in November.

In January, satellite images showed the destruction of the two refugee camps housing thousands of Eritreans in the region. About 3,000 people have gone to another camp in Mai-Aini, to which the UN has access, according to Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Many refugees were caught in the crossfire, kidnapped and forced to return to Eritrea under duress from Eritrean forces, Grandi said, citing testimony presented to him during a visit to the camp, during a 4 day trip for meetings with officials in Ethiopia.

Ethiopian federal troops entered Tigray in response to an alleged attack on November 4 and overthrew a ruling dissident party that has opposed Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed since coming to power in April 2018. Good after the government announced victory on November 28, the region's chief pledged to continue the conflict. Since the beginning of the fighting, thousands of people have died and hundreds of thousands have been driven from their homes. Food, water and medicine shortages are reported in the region of more than 5 million people.

Filippo Grandi called on the Ethiopian government to do more to protect civilians in the Tigray region from the consequences of the conflict.

Grandi said, while it is not for me to make a more political judgment, I have a responsibility to tell the government to help minimize and eliminate the impact of this situation on civilians. The situation in Tigray is extremely serious and urgent support is needed to prevent the situation from worsening. Our main priority is access to provide assistance and protection.

A regional interim administration based in Mekelle has claimed life is returning to normal and Abiy's government has said it is sending aid. Yet aid workers and some officials in Tigray have warned of a humanitarian catastrophe marked by widespread famine. Reports from all sides are difficult to verify, as the government has largely isolated Tigray from media and foreign aid workers. Telecommunications in many localities are not working.

Relief agencies, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, said they could not access many areas to deliver humanitarian aid. Filippo Grandi said that the humanitarian situation in Tigray was very serious, very urgent and that without further action, the situation would worsen, adding that the biggest obstacles to getting aid to people in need are. the security situation and permits from the authorities. According to the UN report, around 100,000 people are displaced in Tigray and some 60,000 people have taken refuge in Sudan.