Ethiopia expels seven top UN officials for 'meddling'

Ethiopia asked seven senior United Nations staff members to leave the country within 72 hours for allegedly meddling in the Horn of Africa nation's internal affairs, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

"Ethiopia Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared "persona non grata" for seven individuals who have been working for some #UN humanitarian agencies in #Ethiopia for meddling in the internal affairs of the country. They must leave the country within the next 72 hrs," the Foreign Ministry tweeted.

The move comes as humanitarian workers have been sounding the alarm about the limited access to the embattled Tigray region, which has been hit by conflict for nearly 11 months, according to Al Jazeera.

Grant Leaity, deputy humanitarian coordinator for OCHA, and Adele Khodr, UNICEF representative in Ethiopia, were among those expelled. OCHA's Kwesi Sansculotte, Saeed Moahmoud Hersi, Ghada Eltahir Midawi and Marcy Vigoda were also ordered to leave, along with Sonny Onyegbula, of the UN Office of the high commissioner for human rights.

( With inputs from ANI )

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