News: Ethiopia restores electricity to various towns in Southern Tigray, Amhara regions
Addis Ababa: The Ethiopian Electric Utility says electricity has been restored in areas stretching from Alamata in southern Tigray to Kobo in North Wollo Zone of the Amhara Region. The towns include Korem, Waja, Timuga, and Kobo, according to the utility, which said this came following maintenance of a major 66 kilovolt power transmission line from Alamata to Lalibela.
The power outage, along with other basic services, have been in place since June 2021 when Tigrayan forces took over most parts of Tigray after ten months of the start of the war in early November 2020.
The Federal government accuses Tigrayan forces of deliberately destructing electric infrastructures, while the Tigrayan authorities say the government has deliberately cut off basic services including electricity, banking and communications in areas under the administration of the Tigray regional government.
Speaking to CGTN on Monday 31 October,, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said that currently, in the cities that the federal army controls, “like Shire, Axum and Adwa,” the government is providing humanitarian aid. “We will continue to provide them the necessary services in our capacity; the federal government in all our capacity, it is our minimum responsibility to assist and provide services for our citizens including Tigray; so we are trying all our best to do that; I think we will achieve that,” PM Abiy said.
Shimelis Woldesemayat, the Ethiopian Electric Utility Woldia district director, said that the towns regained electricity, “due to the rapid maintenance” on high and low power lines that were heavily damaged in the war. AS
