ETHIOPIA: Government denies ‘blocking’ NGO (Irinnews)

A spokesperson for the Ethiopian government told IRIN that MSF was "exaggerating the situation" and that the government had "never blocked any NGO" from the region.

Meanwhile, a UN humanitarian assessment mission continues its visit to the area, which began on 30 August. International aid access to the remote and arid region bordering Somalia, where government troops are cracking down on the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), has been limited, sometimes due to insecurity, for months. The ONLF has claimed the government has been intimidating communities before they meet the UN mission, but has also declared a ceasefire for its duration. ...more