Addis Ababa, April 29, 2022 (FBC) – In a biweekly press briefing, Spokesperson of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dina Mufti briefed local and international media on latest developments regarding political, economic and citizen-centered diplomatic activities.
Ambassador Dina Mufti recalled that the Government of Ethiopia declared an Indefinite Humanitarian Truce on March 24, 2022, to allow unfettered access to humanitarian supplies to the people in the Tigray region.
Following the truce, the government has shown its commitment to peace by allowing continuous daily humanitarian flights and working with humanitarian operators to get access to the region via road transport, he noted.
“As a result, a total of 146 convoys including nine fuel tankers were supplied to the Tigray region since the declaration of the truce,”
The TPLF has announced the withdrawal of its forces from the Amhara and Afar regions and the international media echoed these lies without cross-checking facts, Dina stated.
The truth is that the TPLF forces have only withdrawn from a few areas of Eribti, Berehale, and Abala town while maintaining control of the surrounding areas of Abala affecting the aid corridor. It is still in control of other Woredas of Afar and the Amhara region, he added.
Contrary to the allegations of the TPLF and its sympathizers, the amount of aid supplied to the Tigry region has never been limited by the Ethiopian government.
The provision of aid is only depending on the capacity of the international partners to provide the required amount of resources and secure safe passage.
“The recent propaganda of the TPLF clique on “the shortage of medicine” in the hospitals of the Tigray region is a deliberate spin to create the illusion of scarcity while diverting the continuous supply of medicine, medical equipment and nutritious minerals through unhindered daily air flights, to private businesses and pharmacies,” Dina noted.
TPLF has written an open letter on April 21, 2022, to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres threatening that it will launch another round of attack if its demands are not met.
TPLF is mobilizing a massive number of fighters to the areas adjacent to the Amhara and Afar regions to wage another devastating war based on a fabricated narrative, Ambassador Dina said.
The international community should understand that the claims of the TPLF are baseless and are aimed to thwart the peacebuilding initiatives of the government, including the truce that seemed to create an understanding between the government of Ethiopia and the international community, the Spokesperson underscored.
To let the Humanitarian Truce function in full force and properly, the international community should explicitly demand that the TPLF withdraw from all of the occupied Afar and Amhara regions, he stressed.
Since there is a shortage of resources as compared to the number of people in need of assistance, we encourage the international community to scale up support in this regard.
On the other hand, he said Ethiopia has repatriated 3410 citizens from Saudi Arabia over the week.
As part of the Eid-to-Eid call, the Eid-to-Eid Expo was launched yesterday in the presence of Ambassador Birtukan Ayano to promote Ethiopian made products.
The Expo aimed to engage the Diaspora community who has come to Ethiopia responding to the Eid-to-Eid call, to buy products made in Ethiopia, encourage local manufacturers and promote the country in this regard.