The UN World Food Program (WFP) dispatched its first humanitarian flight to Ethiopia’s Tigray region, which is at the brink of famine, the WFP said on Thursday.
“The first United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) passenger flight… has touched down at Tigray’s Alula Aba Nega International Airport in Mekelle today. It is the first passenger flight into the region since commercial flights were halted on 24 June and carried more than 30 employees from multiple humanitarian organizations working to deliver urgently needed assistance to conflict-affected communities across Tigray,” the WFP said in a press release.
While the UNHAS flights will now operate twice a week to bring humanitarian personnel to Tigray, moving humanitarian supplies has been more challenging and remains a primary concern, the release said.