UN officials warn that the Tigray crisis is reaching new extremes, as the region is labelled a stage five emergency, putting nearly 350,000 people at immediate risk of famine.  Since the onset of the Tigray War in November 2020 between the central government and Tigray’s regional forces, the IPC reports that the conflict is a fundamental cause of acute food security.

The UN reported that mass displacement and loss of livelihood continue, even though the international community has pleaded to end the conflict, decimated the region. The UN human rights office accused participants of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, prolonging and worsening an already horrific conflict.  Human rights organizations are also struggling to aid the citizens most affected.

Catherine Sozi, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Ethiopia, claims the Tigray region is not easily accessible for humanitarian assistance. The central region, the most populated with roughly 1.8 million people, is inaccessible for relief; this threatens nearly 2 million with famine.    European Union crisis management commissioner Janez Lenarcic has pleaded for urgency in resolving the conflict. Lenarcic explained that “to avoid [an] humanitarian catastrophe, the entire international community must act directly and indirectly, quickly and robustly.”

There is a vital problem with reaching the citizens who need relief. The Tigray region is currently under control by three powers. According to BBC News,  Ethiopia’s government controls land with only one-third of the people, while the Eritrean army and Tigrayan rebels control the remaining area. The Eritrean army does not cooperate with any humanitarian agency, and the Tigrayan rebels do not allow aid workers in and cut off mobile phone coverage in the region.

The inability to access people in desperate need further increases the risk of famine and human rights violations. Humanitarian aid must reach civilians, giving them the aid they urgently need and protecting them from being attacked. Throughout the conflict-torn region, ordinary civilians face an immediate risk of violence, with women facing the brunt of horrendous crimes.

Since the onset of the Civil War, Ethiopian National Defense Forces, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, Eritrean Defense Forces, and Amhara regional special police and affiliated Fano militias have been accused of committing atrocious crimes against humanity. However, the horrific acts have lacked response and accountability on each side. Attacks have included widespread indiscriminate and discriminate civilian attacks, ranging from execution, rape, forced displacement, and destroying infrastructures like hospitals, schools, and livestock. Without access to areas currently under control by the Eritrean army and Tigrayan rebels, civilian casualties will continue. The United Nations must intervene before a famine occurs and loss of life increases.

The power struggle follows the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) reign from 1991 to 2019.  The EPRDF ruled Ethiopia as an ethnic federalist state until the party dissolved and Abiy Ahmed formed a government with the new Prosperity Party. The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which led the EPRDF as a coalition party for 28 years, refused to enter the new Prosperity Party. Despite COVID-19 postponing the 2020 election, Tigray proceeded with their local one.

Ethiopians rejected the idea of Western intervention and denounced the U.S. restrictions of aid to Ethiopia for their alleged war crimes. In a pro-government rally, thousands of Ethiopians gathered in a stadium to criticize the U.S. decision to restrict economic and security assistance. A potential UN intervention must not control the region, but remain a protecting force for innocent civilians and provide them with the humanitarian relief they require. The goal should provide Tigrayans with the necessities they need to survive, not an alternative political motivation.