Ethiopia claims 'normalcy' in Tigray amid reports of looming 'humanitarian crisis'

Demeke Mekonnen.
(Image credit: ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP via Getty Images)

Ethiopia's Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen on Friday briefed a private gathering that was hosted by the Atlantic Council and included Biden administration staffers on the situation in the country's Tigray region, The Associated Press reports.

Demeke and his colleagues reportedly said Tigray — which began experiencing a violent conflict last November that has resulted in thousands of deaths — has "returned to normalcy" and that 1.5 million people have been reached with humanitarian aid. But reports from the ground, though difficult to come by, suggest otherwise, especially in rural areas. Accounts retrieved by Doctors Without Borders and the World Peace Foundation described hospitals in poor conditions with "no food, no water, and no money" and "crippling" hunger among the region's rural population that could lead to a "massive humanitarian crisis."

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.