Ethiopia says U.N. staff will face penalties if they break the law

FILE PHOTO: Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and leader of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) party Debretsion Gebremichael are pictured on the Maleda Local News papers, showing the conflict marking one year, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, November 3, 2021. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri/File Photo

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) -Ethiopian staff working for the United Nations or African Union do not live "in space" and will be punished for any lawbreaking, the government said on Thursday, after the arrest of several U.N. employees for unspecified offences.

Ethiopia declared a state of emergency on Nov. 2 after rebellious forces from the northern region of Tigray and their allies made territorial gains and threatened to march on the capital.