US threatens sanctions against officials in Tigray conflict

By NOMAAN MERCHANT
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is threatening to impose sanctions against Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and other leaders involved in conflict in the Tigray region. Ten months of fighting have left hundreds of thousands of people there facing famine. A new executive order allows the Treasury Department to sanction leaders and groups seen as fueling the conflict. The U.S. wants to see progress soon toward a cease-fire. The Ethiopian leader has refused international efforts so far to resolve the conflict, which has caused the world’s largest hunger crisis in a decade. In a letter addressed to President Joe Biden, the prime minister said Ethiopia would not succumb to pressure.