Mekelle, December 31, 2025 (Tigray Nass Media Agency) Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) issues an urgent appeal to the African Union (AU), warning of what it describes as an intensifying mass starvation crisis among internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Tigray and condemning the violations of the Pretoria Peace Agreement.
In a letter addressed to AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, TPLF indicates that mortality rates in IDP centers have sharply increased in December 2025, reaching levels “exceeding even active warfare,” after five years of sustained suffering since November 2020.
The letter states that hundreds of thousands of IDPs across camps in Hitsats, Shire, Adwa, Abiy-Addi, Adigrat, and Mekelle are facing systematic starvation, in violation of Article IV of the Pretoria Agreement. It alleges that deaths, particularly among children and the elderly, are now occurring daily.
TPLF blames the federal government of falsely claiming that humanitarian aid is being delivered, while in reality no meaningful assistance is reaching IDP camps. It also alleges active obstruction of community and diaspora-led relief efforts, including the criminalization of fundraising and the seizure of donated funds. “Tik Tok creators forced to deposit tens of millions of Birr into government accounts…” the letter reads.
According to the letter, more than one million displaced people remain unable to return to Western Tigray, which it describes as “occupied and cleansed,” leaving the core cause of displacement unresolved despite commitments made under Pretoria Peace Agreement.
TPLF calls on the AU to demand immediate, unconditional humanitarian access to all IDP camps, deploy an independent fact-finding mission, enforce compliance with the Pretoria Agreement, lift restrictions on relief fundraising, and ensure accountability for officials accused of obstructing aid.
“Silence now is complicity,” the letter warns, urging immediate international action to prevent what it describes an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.
“We demand immediate action before IDP centers became mass graves, before the promise of Pretoria becomes the same of generation.” the letter adds.
