Ethiopia’s Tigray Crisis: What’s Stopping Aid Getting In?

The UN says more than five million people are in dire need of humanitarian assistance in the region.

Delivering aid to Tigray has been extremely challenging over the past few months, despite the urgent need there.

It follows a bloody eight-month battle between the Ethiopian army and the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) for control of the Tigray region.

Now the fighting has now spilled over into the neighbouring Afar region to the east, threatening one of the key supply routes into Tigray.

Tens of thousands have been displaced by the latest unrest, making the need for humanitarian support ever more urgent.

There are parts of Tigray where it has been possible to reach those in need – particularly areas now stable and under the control of the TPLF. The UN estimates that overall, 75% of people in need in Tigray are now reachable; in May, this figure was only 30%.

But the UN also warns that “stocks are rapidly depleting” even in these areas, with access far from straightforward.

Only one UN food convoy has successfully reached Mekelle this month: 54 trucks with food and other critical aid arrived in the regional capital on 12 July “after days traversing roadblocks”.

This represents just 1% of the food that is needed for the month, says Samantha Power, of US Agency for International Development (USAID).

The UN calculates at least 60 trucks need to be arriving in Tigray every day, in order to fully meet the requirements of those people caught up in the crisis.

On 5 July, the government announced it would allow humanitarian flights.

However, it put in place strict controls – including a requirement for all flights to land first in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, for inspection.

So far, these flights have only included a limited number of humanitarian personnel but not food aid.

Overland routes have also been severely restricted.

To the south, pro-government forces in the Amhara region have been preventing supplies getting through. A 29-truck convoy carrying World Food Programme (WFP) aid was forced to turn back on 29 June, reports the UN.

It’s also been impossible to bring in aid by road from Sudan, into western Tigray, an area under the control of groups supporting the Ethiopian government.

Until recently therefore, the only passable land route has been through eastern Tigray, with convoys entering via the Afar region of Ethiopia.

However, with recent fighting spilling into Afar, this route in now in jeopardy as well.

Last week, the WFP suspended movement of convoys from Afar into Tigray after a convoy of 10 vehicles was attacked. It’s not clear who carried out the attack, but observers suggest pro-government militia were responsible.

A further convoy of more than 200 trucks remains on standby in the Afar town of Semera, but the WFP says the trucks won’t leave for Tigray until the security situation improves.

The head of Ethiopia’s disaster relief agency, Mituku Kassa, has accused the TPLF in the Afar region of stopping aid trucks destined for Tigray.

Prime minister Abiy Ahmed has also accused the rebels of blocking humanitarian assistance to Mekelle through the Afar region, by bombarding the road with heavy artillery.

The TPLF has not commented on the government’s claim but has previously said it would “extend whatever support is necessary to ensure the safety and security” of aid workers.

Meanwhile, the UN says checkpoints set up on the main routes into Tigray have delayed movement of humanitarian cargo.

The government has been critical of aid organisations and has insisted on checking all the cargo being transported.