The White House strongly condemned Thursday the government of Ethiopia's expulsion of UN officials, saying "we will not hesitate to use... any other tool at our disposal to respond quickly and decisively to those who obstruct humanitarian assistance to the people of Ethiopia." "The US government condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the government of Ethiopia's unprecedented action to expel the leadership of all of the United Nations organizations involved in ongoing humanitarian operations," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters. She added, "We agree with UN leaders. This is a stain on our collective conscience, and it must stop." "We're deeply concerned that this action continues a pattern by the Ethiopian government of obstructing the delivery of food, medicine, and other lifesaving supplies to those most in need," she continued. "We call on the UN Security Council and members of the international community to take urgent action to make clear to the government of Ethiopia that impeding humanitarian operations and depriving your own citizens of the basic means of survival is unacceptable," she stressed. Psaki shed light on the executive order President Joe Biden signed earlier this month that enables the US government to impose financial sanctions "on those prolonging the conflict in northern Ethiopia," warning "we will not hesitate to use this or any other tool at our disposal to respond quickly and decisively to those who obstruct humanitarian assistance to the people of Ethiopia." According to news reports, the Ethiopian government expelled seven UN officials declaring them "persona non grata," giving them 72 hours to leave the country. The US called for an immediate reversal of this decision. The officials to be expelled from the country include the head of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), whose work is critical to the ongoing humanitarian relief effort. This announcement comes just days after OCHA Chief Martin Griffiths warned that a man-made famine is taking hold in Ethiopia. The expulsion is counterproductive to international efforts to keep civilians safe, and deliver lifesaving humanitarian assistance to the millions in dire need. — Agencies
