UNHCR published on 1 February 2021 "Remarks by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi at the Press Conference in Addis Ababa."
Grandi visited Ethiopia, including the Eritrean refugee camp of Mai Aini in southern Tigray Region, and met with senior Ethiopian officials. He expressed appreciation for the cooperation of Ethiopian officials but described the situation in Tigray Region as "extremely grave." He said violence by "various armed elements and militias" and criminals continues in Tigray Region.
As of November 2020, there were four Eritrean refugee camps in Tigray Region. The two camps at Hitsats and Shimelba in northern Tigray "suffered severe destruction." Between 15,000 and 20,000 refugees are missing from the camps. Refugees still at the camps in southern Tigray, Mai Aini and Adi Harush, expressed their fear for the future. Some refugees were forced to return to Eritrea by "Eritrean forces" in the area. Grandi also noted there are now more than 60,000 Ethiopian refugees in Sudan, most of whom want to return to Ethiopia.
While avoiding the issue of blame, Grandi concluded there have been "a lot of violations on all sides" that must be impartially investigated.
