Ethiopia's national ombudsman has revealed that nearly 400 people have died of starvation in the Tigray and Amhara regions in recent months. Local officials had previously reported such deaths, but the federal government had denied these claims. The UN and the USA had suspended food aid in Tigray and Ethiopia after discovering a ‘large-scale’ scheme to steal humanitarian grain. but lifted the pause in December after implementing reforms. However, Tigray authorities claim that food is not reaching those in need, citing technical issues and funding shortages. Only 14% of the 3.2 million people targeted for food aid in Tigray had received it by 21 January. The Tigray Food Cluster, a group of aid agencies, has urged immediate scaling up of operations to prevent severe food insecurity and malnutrition, particularly among vulnerable children and women. Approximately 20.1 million people across Ethiopia require humanitarian food assistance due to drought, conflict, and economic challenges.