The Weeknd Sounds the Alarm on Tigray Famine in Ethiopia

The Weeknd is weaving his Ethiopian flag again. This time, it’s to raise awareness about the looming famine in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

In his latest tweet about Tigray, the Weekend shared that he was briefed by the head of USAID Samantha Power about the response to the crisis in the region. USAID is on the ground providing much needed aid. The organization has also continuously called for there to be ceasefire so that aid can be delivered to all affected civilians.

The Weeknd finished his tweet by asking his followers to spread awareness of the devastating crisis and make donations.

Was briefed today by US Gov team @USAID & @PowerUSAID leading emergency response about the devastating crisis in #Tigray Ethiopia. 90% of the population – require humanitarian assistance. We can help by spreading awareness and donating https://t.co/Cvbmk3YnZa pic.twitter.com/6UNRqe2LL0

— The Weeknd (@theweeknd) June 9, 2021

Back in April, the R&B star donated $1 million for food for those affected by the war raging in the Tigray region of Ethiopia since November of 2020. The Weekend, whose birth name is Abel Tesfaye, is the son of Ethiopian immigrants.

While announcing his donation, the Weekend added, “My heart breaks for my people of Ethiopia as innocent civilians ranging from small children to the elderly are being senselessly murdered.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNQBL4ihjUU/

A recent report from the United Nations has disclosed that 90% of the Tigray population, over 5 million people, are in need of urgent, lifesaving aid.

War broke out in Ethiopia when Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed sent federal forces to the Tigray region, alleging that the TPLF, the political party leading Tigray, attacked a government military base. Since then, there have been numerous reports of atrocities, mass rape, and starvation mainly committed by Ethiopian federal troops and troops from neighboring Eritrea who crossed over to Tigray assist the Ethiopian government.

In recent weeks, both the US government and the EU have pushed for there to be ceasefire and for all waring parties to come to the table to negotiate. The Ethiopian government has declined all requests for negotiations.

Watch our explainer video below on this war.

The Ethiopian Civil War: 5 Reasons to Speak Up

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Other celebrities like Bella Hadid, Kat Graham, Naomi Cambell have spoken up about the horrific war in Tigray.

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