USAID pauses food assistance to Tigray region of Ethiopia

FILE PHOTO: Boys play soccer at a camp for the internally displaced due to the fighting between the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) forces in Dessie town, Amhara region, Ethiopia, October 8, 2021. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced on Wednesday the temporary suspension of its food assistance to the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

While describing the move as a "difficult decision", USAID Administrator Samantha Power said the agency recently discovered that food aid intended for people of the region, who are suffering under famine-like condition, was being diverted and sold on the local market.