Ethiopians have protested over a huge 94-percent budget cut made by the UN World Food Program for Eritrea, according to aid officials. The cut is reflected in the reduced number of people provided with food. The United Nations seeks to ease the country?s dependence on foreign humanitarian assistance. The UN estimated that two-thirds of the 3.6 million people in Eritrea are in need of food assistance. However, the Eritrean government believes that the United Nations is creating a picture of crisis in the country to cover up for UN?s failure to implement a ruling that awards a flashpoint town to Eritrea after the 1998-2000 war in Ethiopia that killed over 70,000 people. Ethiopia has yet to comply with a 2000 peace accord which sets a demarcation line between the two states.
Source: Rural Eritreans complain about food aid cuts (Reuters)
