More than 860 people have died of starvation since September 2023 in Ethiopia’s war-torn northern Tigray region, a regional official said.
Tigray Communications Bureau chief Redai Halefom said the number may be higher as there are unreported deaths caused by famine in Ethiopia’s conflict-affected Tigray region.
He warned that the humanitarian situation in this region continues to deteriorate, and “this famine could be the worst in modern history.”
He added that people continue to die due to the lack of adequate humanitarian intervention.
Getachev Reda, interim president of the Tigray regional administration, said in late December that the situation was a “disaster,” comparing it to the deadly famine of 1984 that left millions dead in Ethiopia.
Devastating war and drought-induced famine created a deadly combination that put 91 percent of Tigray’s citizens at risk of starvation.
Reda said thousands of residents have died due to lack of food since the signing of the Pretoria agreement ending the conflict between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in November last year.
The interim government declared a state of emergency due to the ongoing humanitarian crisis at the beginning of December last year, AA writes.
