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Ethiopian government spokesman Radwan Hussain confirms that his country’s forces fired at a UN team because its members “ignored instructions and violated government checkpoints” in the northern region of Tigray.
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Nearly 600,000 people in the Tigray region had food aid even before the outbreak of the fighting (AFP – Archive)
Ethiopian government spokesman Radwan Hussain admitted Tuesday that his country’s forces fired at a United Nations team because its members, as he said, “ignored instructions and violated government checkpoints in the northern region of Tigray.” .
The shooting comes at a time when the United Nations and aid agencies continue to seek access to northern Ethiopia, more than a week after announcing the cessation of fighting there on November 28.
In this context, Hussein said: “Several UN employees were arrested and some were shot … They crossed two checkpoints to go to areas they were not supposed to go to and were told not to go. They were shot and detained. “
Hussein also saw that “United Nations employees are the ones who bear responsibility for the incident that occurred on Sunday near the town of Sherry,” and said that “they are embarking on an exploratory adventure.”
“This country is not an abandoned land, it has a government,” he added. Hussein also said: “If someone is told not to go, they must comply. You cannot ignore a warning from the government and then try to avoid everyone.”
Thousands of people were killed in fighting that broke out on November 4 between government forces and forces loyal to the TPLF leadership.
Some 50,000 people fled to Sudan, while some 600,000 in the Tigray region depended on food aid even before the fighting broke out.
Last week, the United Nations said it had signed an agreement with the Ethiopian government guaranteeing “unconditional access to humanitarian aid.” However, the government spokesman contradicted this.
He noted that “the agreement that we concluded is based on the belief that the United Nations will cooperate with us, and we, the government, have the last word, so we coordinate and lead, but we need help and a partner.”
He continued: “Some partners are not allowed to drive alone and move alone. There is no unrestricted access to all corners of Ethiopia.”
The Ethiopian government said it had “captured and killed” most of the leaders of the Tigray Liberation Forces in the north of the country, while the leader of the latter responded by saying that “civilians organized protests against the looting of the occupation soldiers “.
This came after the Ethiopian army announced that it had fully controlled Mekele, the capital of the Tigray region.
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