USAID chief concerned by 'dehumanising rhetoric' in Ethiopia amid war in Tigray region

FILE PHOTO: Residents walk past Adi Harush Refugee camp in Mai Tsberi town in Tigray Region, Ethiopia, June 26, 2021. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) -The head of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) said on Wednesday during a visit to Ethiopia that she had raised her concerns about "dehumanising rhetoric" with authorities, amid war in the country's northern Tigray region.

Samantha Power's visit to the country, and to neighbouring Sudan, this week follows warnings from U.S. President Joe Biden's administration of punitive measures against the Ethiopian government if aid is unable to reach the Tigray region.