WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom supporting Tigray rebels, accuses Ethiopian Army General

The Ethiopian army chief has accused the World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of supporting the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), Tigray state's dominant political party which is fighting the federal troops. General Berhanu Jula, in a televised speech on Thursday, said that Tedros is helping TPLF in procuring arms and providing diplomatic support. However, Jula did not cite any evidence to back his claims. 

Read: People Go Hungry In Ethiopia's Tigray As Conflict Marches On

"This man is a member of that group and he has been doing everything to support them. He has worked in neighbouring countries to condemn the war. He has worked for them to get weapons. What do you expect from him [Tedros]? We don’t expect he will side with the Ethiopian people and condemn them," Aljazeera quoted Jula as saying in his speech. 

Read: UN Agencies Call For Civilian Protection In Tigray

Meanwhile, Tedros, who is an Ethiopian and the first African director-general of WHO, has dismissed the reports of him taking sides in the ongoing conflict, adding "I am only at the side of peace." Tedros, who rose to fame as WHO's Director-General after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, has called on all parties to resolve the issue peacefully keeping in mind the safety of Ethiopians.  

Read: Tigray Residents Flee To Sudan Amid Violence

Tigray conflict

The conflict in Tigray was sparked after Ethiopia's Nobel Peace Prize-winning Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed tried to bring reforms by separating politics from ethnic federalism, an ethnicity-based power-sharing system, which had given the minority Tigray people an advantage at the federal level. TPLF refused to join the newly-created Prosperity Party, which Ahmed formed after merging regional parties of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, which had ruled the country for 30 years.

The conflict escalated after TPLF in defiance of the federal government's order to postpone all elections in the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic, held parliamentary polls in September. The row turned hostile after heavily armed TPLF allegedly attacked a military base of the federal forces on November 4. The conflict has caused civilians to flee to neighbouring Sudan and has raised concerns about health safety amid ongoing pandemic. 

Read: Ethiopia’s Tigray Leader Confirms Firing Missiles At Eritrea

(Image Credit: AP)