Four aid workers killed last month amid Ethiopia conflict

Details about the deaths, including when they took place, are still unclear. Internet and phone communications have been cut off in the region by the Ethiopian government for much of the conflict, making it difficult to verify details of the fighting.

Fighting in Tigray began on Nov. 4 after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accused the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, the region’s ruling party, of attacking federal troops. At the end of November, Abiy declared victory, and the government has insisted since then that fighting has come to a halt. However, reports say the conflict has continued.

The Danish Refugee Council said those killed from its organization were guards at a project site.

“Sadly, due to the lack of communications and ongoing insecurity in the region, it has not yet been possible to reach their families,” the statement read. “We will continue all efforts to reach them and ensure that they receive support.”

“We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague; our in-country staff are the very heart of our work and are key in our ability to provide support and assistance to our clients,” the International Refugee Committee said. “Communication with the area is extremely difficult and we are still working to gather and confirm the details surrounding the events that led to the death of our colleague.”

Saviano Abreu, spokesman for the United Nations’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told the Washington Post last week that lingering security concerns have delayed aid from being delivered to the region. Before the conflict began, 600,000 people in Tigray were dependent on food aid, according to Reuters.

The prime minister’s office issued a statement on Friday dismissing the concerns: “Suggestions that humanitarian assistance is impeded due to active military combat, in several cities and surrounding areas within the Tigray region, is untrue and undermines the critical work undertaken by the National Defense Forces to stabilise the region from the attacks waged by the belligerent clique.”