Tigray crisis: WHO chief says ‘skin color’ behind not helping Tigrayans

Describing it as “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis,” with 6 million people unable to access basic services, Tedros questioned in an emotional plea why the situation is not getting the same attention as the conflict in Ukraine.

“Maybe it’s the color of people’s skin,” Tedros, who is from Tigray, said at a virtual media briefing on Wednesday. In April this year at a press briefing, he wondered if “black and white lives” in emergencies around the world were getting similar attention.

The battles between Ethiopian and Tigrayan forces left thousands dead and hundreds of thousands severely food insecure. according to to the Internal Displacement Control Center.

Last year, the crisis set a world record for displacement in a single year and displaced more than 5.1 million people.

WHO Emergency Director Mike Ryan also criticized the apparent lack of concern about the drought and famine unfolding in the Horn of Africa, and the health crisis that followed.

“No one seems to care what’s happening in the Horn of Africa,” Ryan said, speaking at a virtual media briefing on Wednesday.

The World Health Organization has called for $123.7 million to address health problems resulting from growing malnutrition in the region, where nearly 200 million people live and millions suffer from hunger.