2.5 mln Ethiopians out of reach of humanitarian assistance: UN

ADDIS ABABA, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Around 2.5 million Ethiopians are out of reach of humanitarian assistance, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) disclosed on Thursday.

"An estimated 2.5 million people in rural areas of Ethiopia's northern Tigray regional state have not had access to essential services over the past four months," the OCHA disclosed.

The UN agency also said insecurity in parts of southern and southeastern Tigray has hindered humanitarian response in the area.

It disclosed that alongside humanitarian partners, it is scaling up humanitarian response despite challenges, with already more than one million people assisted with food baskets.

The UN and partner agencies have also provided emergency shelter and vital relief items to more than 146,000 displaced people.

The OCHA however reported that the overall humanitarian situation in Tigray remains extremely dire.

It said that the UN continues to receive concerning reports of attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, including looting and vandalization of health centres and schools, as well as several cases of sexual and gender-based violence.

It said the conflict continues to drive massive displacement across the region, with tens of thousands of people arriving in Shire, Axum and Adwa over the past weeks.

Fighting that erupted in early November last year in Ethiopia's Tigray between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which used to rule the regional state, and the Ethiopian Defense Forces had left thousands of people killed and caused immense losses in the region.

According to the Ethiopian government figures, the conflict has displaced around 2.2 million people, while 4.5 million people are in need of emergency aid.