The Ethiopian government has granted the United Nations "unrestricted" humanitarian access to the breakaway region of Tigray after four weeks of armed conflict and requests for aid, according to a document consulted on Wednesday 2 December by AFP.

This document, an agreement signed by the UN and the Ethiopian Minister of Peace, authorizes "unrestricted, continuous and secure access for humanitarian personnel and services to vulnerable populations in areas managed (by the government) in Tigray and in the border areas of the neighboring Amhara and Afar regions.

A senior UN official who requested anonymity said Wednesday that the agreement would allow the United Nations and its humanitarian partners to deliver aid "wherever people need it".

Initial assessments of on-site assistance will begin "as soon as our security teams give us the green light", he added.

The Tigray region cut off from the world

Tigray has been deprived of all supplies since November 4, when Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent the federal army to attack the forces of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the party that runs the region and defied his authority for months.

The UN has been warning for several weeks against a possible disaster in Tigray, almost cut off from the world since, due to a blackout on communications and access restrictions.

Before the conflict, an estimated 600,000 people - including 96,000 Eritrean refugees living in four camps - were totally dependent on food aid for food in Tigray, and a million more were provided with a food "safety net", according to the report. the UN Humanitarian Coordination Office (Ocha).

>> To read also: Conflict in Ethiopia: "Abiy Ahmed's intention is not to put Tigray to fire and blood"

Four weeks of fighting prompted some 45,500 people to flee to neighboring Sudan and displaced an unknown number of men, women and children inside Tigray.

Abiy Ahmed declared victory on Saturday, after the announced capture of the regional capital Mekele by government troops and said he controlled almost all of Tigray.

But the president of the region, Debretsion Gebremichael, has promised to continue the fight against "the invaders".

With AFP

The summary of the week

France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 application

google-play-badge_FR