(This September 30, 2018 story has been corrected to state that NRC/MSF was wrongly accused of accusing unnamed assistance groups of arming rebels.

Dawit Endeshaw

ADDIS ABABA, Reuters – Seven senior U.N. officials have been expelled from Ethiopia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday. This comes two days after the chief of the aid organization warned that a blockade of government aid could lead to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Tigrayans.

There has been increasing international criticism of conditions in Tigray and all parties fighting in northern Ethiopia face the possibility of sanctions https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/us-paves-way-more-sanctions-over-ethiopias-tigray-conflict-2021-09-17 from the U.S. government.

Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary, stated to reporters that Thursday’s expulsions were condemned by the United States and would not hesitate in using sanctions against anyone who hinders humanitarian efforts.

She stated that she was deeply disturbed by “this action” of the Ethiopian government, which continues to block the supply of life-saving food and medicine to the most vulnerable.

Requests for comments on expulsions were not answered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately. Ethiopia denied previously blocking food aid.

Many fear that Ethiopia’s conflict, Africa’s second-most populous and an important regional diplomatic weight could lead to further instability in an already unstable region.

The country leaders of the United Nations Children’s Fund and the Head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs are among the seven persons being expelled. According to the Ministry, they have 72 hours for departure. They were accused of interfering with internal affairs.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated that he was shocked by the expulsions. He added, “We now engage with the Government of Ethiopia to ensure that their valuable work will continue.”

In November, conflict broke out between federal forces in the area and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front’s (TPLF) political party.

Tigrayan forces took most of the region back at the beginning of June. They then advanced into neighboring Afar and Amhara regions, forcing hundreds and thousands of residents to flee.

On Tuesday, U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths, the head of OCHA, said a nearly three-month-long “de-facto blockade” of Tigray’s borders has restricted aid deliveries https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/un-aid-chief-ethiopia-famine-tigray-get-those-trucks-moving-2021-09-28 to 10% of what is required.

Griffiths noted that almost a quarter (25%) of Tigray children are malnourished and said “this is human-made.”

Five of the seven individuals being expelled work at OCHA while UNICEF has a sixth and UNICEF has a seventh. OCHA is cooperating with Ethiopia’s state appointed human rights commission to investigate reports of Tigray mass murders.

Ethiopian authorities have previously claimed that aid workers were involved in arming Tigrayan militias, but they did not provide any evidence.

Ethiopia stopped operations at the Dutch Medecins Sans Frontieres branch (MSF), and Norwegian Refugee Council in August.

The group also accuses unnamed aid organizations of arming rebel groups, but has not provided any evidence.

So far, 23 aid workers have been killed https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/three-msf-employees-killed-ethiopias-tigray-aid-agency-says-2021-06-25 in Tigray.