Hunger, Death, Devastation: No Respite in Tigray a Year After US Aid Cuts

One year after the United States suspended most humanitarian aid to Ethiopia’s Tigray region, hunger, disease, and despair continue to define daily life for millions. Despite the end of large-scale fighting, the humanitarian crisis has not eased. For many families in Tigray, survival remains a daily struggle marked by empty food stores, limited healthcare, and fading hope.
Aid workers and local residents say the region has seen little recovery, highlighting how deeply the suspension of assistance has affected an already fragile population.
A Region Still Reeling from War
Tigray endured one of the most devastating conflicts in recent African history. Years of fighting destroyed farms, clinics, schools, and basic infrastructure. Although a ceasefire brought an end to major combat, it did not bring immediate relief.
Entire communities were left without reliable access to food, clean water, or medical services. When U.S. aid was cut due to concerns over misuse and diversion, the impact was swift and severe.
Humanitarian agencies warn that the war may have ended, but its consequences are far from over.
Why US Aid Was Cut
In early 2024, the United States announced a suspension of most food aid to Ethiopia, including Tigray. Officials cited credible reports of aid theft and diversion, stating that assistance was not always reaching those most in need.
While the decision was intended to protect accountability, humanitarian groups cautioned that ordinary civilians would bear the cost. One year later, those warnings appear to have become reality.
Local aid workers say the suspension created a gap that no other donor has been able to fully fill.
Hunger as a Daily Reality
Across Tigray, hunger is no longer seasonal—it is constant. Families report eating one small meal a day or less, often made from wild plants or borrowed grain.
Markets remain largely empty, and food prices have soared beyond what most households can afford. Farmers, once the backbone of the region, lack seeds, tools, and livestock to restart production.
Children are among the hardest hit. Health workers report rising cases of severe malnutrition, stunted growth, and weakened immune systems.
A Healthcare System on the Brink
Tigray’s healthcare system, already damaged by war, has struggled to function without adequate funding and supplies. Many clinics operate with minimal staff, limited medicines, and unreliable electricity.
Doctors report seeing preventable deaths from treatable illnesses, including infections, complications during childbirth, and chronic conditions like diabetes.
Without consistent aid, hospitals face impossible choices about who receives care and who does not.
Death Beyond the Battlefield
While large-scale fighting has stopped, death remains a constant presence in the region. People are dying not from bullets or bombs, but from hunger, disease, and exhaustion.
Aid groups stress that these deaths are just as tragic—and just as preventable. They warn that prolonged deprivation could erase an entire generation’s future.
For many families, grief has become a routine part of life.
Aid Workers Struggling to Cope
Humanitarian workers on the ground describe a sense of moral exhaustion. With limited resources, they must decide which communities receive assistance and which are left waiting.
Some organizations have scaled back operations or withdrawn entirely due to funding shortages. Others continue at reduced capacity, relying on local volunteers and donations.
Aid workers say the situation has created deep frustration and despair, as they witness suffering they cannot fully address.
Political and Humanitarian Tensions
The aid suspension has also fueled political tension. Ethiopian authorities argue that they are working to prevent diversion and restore trust with donors. Critics, however, say the slow pace of reform has cost lives.
International observers stress that accountability and humanitarian access must go hand in hand. Without a solution, civilians remain trapped between political decisions and survival needs.
Calls for Renewed Engagement
Human rights organizations and aid agencies are urging the U.S. and other donors to reassess their approach. They argue that stronger monitoring systems can address concerns about diversion while allowing life-saving assistance to resume.
Suggested measures include:
Improved tracking of food distribution
Greater involvement of local communities
Independent oversight mechanisms
Gradual restoration of aid with safeguards
Experts warn that continued inaction could push the region toward irreversible damage.
The Human Cost of Delay
For residents of Tigray, international debates feel distant and abstract. What matters is whether there will be food tomorrow, medicine next week, or a future next year.
Parents speak of watching their children grow weaker. Elderly residents fear they will not survive another hungry season. Young people, once hopeful, now see limited prospects ahead.
The absence of aid has turned recovery into a slow, painful process with no clear end in sight.
Conclusion
A year after U.S. aid cuts, Tigray remains locked in a humanitarian crisis defined by hunger, death, and devastation. The end of fighting did not bring peace to daily life, and the absence of sustained international support has deepened suffering across the region.
As global attention shifts elsewhere, Tigray’s crisis risks becoming a forgotten tragedy. Yet aid workers and residents insist it does not have to be this way. With renewed commitment, accountability, and compassion, lives can still be saved.
Until then, for millions in Tigray, respite remains painfully out of reach.