Ethiopia denounces WHO director's stance on Tigray conflict
Ethiopia has called for the opening of an investigation for "forfeiture" against the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for his comments on the humanitarian situation in Tigray, a region in the north of Ethiopia at war for more than a year, where he himself comes from.
Fabrice COFFRINI AFP/File
Text by: RFI Follow
1 min
Addis Ababa asks the WHO to open an investigation against its director, the Ethiopian Tedros Gebreyesus.
She accuses him of threatening
the "integrity
" of the World Health Organization, and biased towards the TPLF, the director, himself a native of Tigray, has several times denounced in very strong terms the blocking of the humanitarian aid in this region.
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With our correspondent in Nairobi,
Florence Morice
"
Nowhere else in the world are we seeing hell like Tigray
."
A few hours after the
director of the WHO made these
very strong remarks, Ethiopia announced that it had seized the World Health Organization to ask it to open an investigation against him.
In its press release released Thursday evening, the Ethiopian government accuses Tedros Gebreyesus of "
forfeiture
", "
violation of his legal and professional responsibility
". Addis Ababa accuses him of "
interference in the internal affairs of Ethiopia
" and nothing more or less than being an "
active member
" of the TPLF, classified as a "
terrorist
" by Ethiopia. The director of the WHO is even accused by his country of providing the movement with “
financial and technical support
”.
These accusations come as the WHO is due to meet next week to endorse the reappointment of Tedros Gebreyesus for a second 5-year term at the head of the organization.
An approach that resembles, according to one observer, an "
attempt to derail
" its renewal at the last moment.
It remains to be seen whether Ethiopia will be able to convince enough WHO member countries of the merits of its approach.
Especially since the current director is the only candidate for re-election.
Friday evening, the World Health Organization had not yet reacted.
According to the UN, airstrikes carried out by the federal authorities in Tigray have killed at least 108 people since the beginning of the year.
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