While the airstrikes by the federal government on targets in Tigray made headlines, the advance of the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front in the neighboring States of Amhara and Afar is largely ignored, despite the fact that the lives of hundreds of survivors of its atrocities are at stake

This is the first official acknowledgement by Eritrea of the presence of its troops in Tigray where they have been accused of committing human rights violations

The UN Security Council discussed the crisis in the Tigray region amid increasing reports of atrocities. UN officials Michelle Bachelet and Mark Lowcock also called for the withdrawal of Eritrean troops from the region

“Living in crowded camps, children and families urgently need food, shelter and clean water…Immunizations have ground to a halt, health and water facilities have been damaged or destroyed, and essential supplies looted,” says UNICEF

The Red Cross warns that the hospital treating the injured is “running dangerously low on sutures, antibiotics, anticoagulants, painkillers, and even gloves.”

The military conflict between Ethiopia’s federal government and the Tigray regional government, which began on November 4, has already claimed thousands of lives. International agencies have raised concerns over shortages of food and medicine.