Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of casualties among (a) combatants and (b) civilians in the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia since 24 August 2022.

Information on casualties from the conflict in northern Ethiopia is scarce, but we believe that since the resumption of fighting on 24 August it is likely that there have been thousands of battlefield casualties. 13 million people require humanitarian assistance as a result of the conflict. We continue to call for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Eritrean troops from Ethiopia, the reopening of humanitarian access to all parts of Tigray, and both sides to attend African Union-convened peace talks.