Fighting in Ethiopia's Amhara region displaces at least 330,000: UN

Xinhua , Tuesday 27 Apr 2021

'The security situation in the Amhara region remains tense and volatile due to intercommunal clashes that have resulted in massive population displacement,'the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said

Ethiopia
People displaced by the recent conflict gather around water points in Embadanso school in Shire, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021. AP

Intercommunal fighting in Ethiopia's Amhara region -- adjacent to restive Tigray -- has displaced at least 330,000 people, UN humanitarians said on Monday evening.

"The security situation in the Amhara region remains tense and volatile due to intercommunal clashes that have resulted in massive population displacement," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. The number of casualties is undetermined.

There also were reports of looting and destruction of property and infrastructure.

While humanitarians are not able to verify displacement figures because of insecurity, OCHA said, regional authorities estimate that at least 330,000 people have been displaced in North Shewa and Oromia Special Zones.

The government, with the support of UN agencies, is providing water, sanitation and hygiene items to affected people. Once the security situation allows, needs and risks assessments will be conducted, OCHA said.

Fighting erupted in Ethiopia's northernmost region of Tigray in early November, triggering mass displacement. 

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