By SUMUR TSEHAYE
The Global Society of Tigray Scholars and Professionals (GSTS) has issued an urgent emergency appeal warning of a rapidly worsening humanitarian catastrophe in several internally displaced persons (IDP) camps across Tigray, where vulnerable civilians are reportedly dying from starvation, severe malnutrition, and preventable diseases.
In a statement released on Tuesday, GSTS said conditions in multiple camps particularly in Hitsats, northwestern Tigray, have reached a critical point, with daily deaths reported among unaccompanied children, pregnant and lactating women, the elderly, people with disabilities, and those suffering from chronic illnesses.
The appeal was addressed to key international humanitarian and political actors, including the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the European Commission, the African Union Commission (AUC), and major donor governments.
According to GSTS, field reports and emerging images from the camps depict dire living conditions, with families lacking adequate food, medical care, and basic services.
“People are succumbing daily to conditions that could be mitigated through immediate humanitarian intervention,” the organization said further warning that continued delays are costing lives that could still be saved.
Calls for Immediate Action
GSTS urged the international community to urgently scale up life-saving food assistance, deploy emergency medical services, and ensure uninterrupted humanitarian access to all IDP sites across the region.
The group emphasized that bureaucratic delays, funding gaps, and access constraints are exacerbating an already desperate situation.
“The gravity of this crisis cannot be overstated,” the statement said.
“Immediate action is essential to avert a full-scale humanitarian catastrophe” it added.
Beyond emergency relief, GSTS called on global and regional actors to use all available political and diplomatic tools to ensure the swift and full implementation of the Pretoria Peace Agreement.
The organization said durable peace is essential to enable the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of displaced Tigrayans to their homes, as well as the repatriation of refugees currently in Sudan.
Protracted Displacement
Hundreds of thousands of people remain displaced about three years after the end of the war, with many yet living in overcrowded camps under harsh conditions.
Aid agencies have repeatedly warned that funding shortfalls and access challenges threaten critical food, nutrition, and health programs across northern Ethiopia.
GSTS reaffirmed its readiness to cooperate with humanitarian agencies, governments, and civil society partners to protect the lives and dignity of Tigrayan IDPs and refugees, stressing that the unfolding crisis demands urgent and coordinated international response.
As of publication, humanitarian agencies had not publicly responded to the latest appeal, but relief organizations have previously warned that without immediate funding and access, mortality rates in displacement sites are likely to rise further in the coming weeks.
The two-year war in Ethiopia’s Tigray region has spawned two catastrophic displacement streams. Tens of thousands escaped into Sudan, with many reporting atrocities and flight from what international advocates term ethnic cleansing. Inside Tigray, over a million people are confined to 146 IDP camps, where aid agencies warn the greatest imminent threat is mass starvation.
(EAD)
