NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – According to the first humanitarian assessment of the devastation, the artillery was hit during two months of fighting, according to the first humanitarian assessment of the devastation, while two months of fighting were hit by artillery. supplies needed.
The extent of the damage was largely unknown, while Ethiopian troops were pursuing and clashing with those of the current fleeing Tigray regional leaders. Transport and communication connections were lost. People who fled the region told The Associated Press and others about looting and the burning of houses.
Tigray leaders dominated the Ethiopian government for nearly three decades before Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power and ousted them amid sweeping reforms that brought him the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. Abiy has rejected international “interference” in the recent conflict.
The full humanitarian assessment, seen by the AP, was drawn up by a joint mission of Ethiopia’s government, United Nations agencies and aid groups visiting the capital of Tigray, Mekele, and communities in southern Tigray at the end of December. after weeks of pleading by the UN and others for access.
Food, medical supplies and other basic things have become disturbing all over the region. The assessment states local authorities that more than 4.5 million people, more than two-thirds of the population, now need humanitarian aid.
“Living conditions for both displaced persons and host communities remain highly critical,” reads the assessment, with food, shelter and health care as immediate needs.
The assessment does not determine who shot at hospitals or caused the damage; the UN humanitarian agency said it did not have confirmation of such details.
“The few food supplies the communities involved had been looted, burned or damaged,” the review said, adding that a locust outbreak exacerbated the situation.
It adds: “As a result of the conflict, many homes, shops and private shops were burned or damaged.” Schools, health centers, shops and other buildings were looted.
An even darker picture is expected from a review based on a visit to western Tigray, where some of the fighting broke out in early November. More than 50,000 people have fled the region to neighboring Sudan, and some tell the AP of mass kidnappings, torture and ethnic killings.