UN accuses Saudi Arabia of seeking to spread COVID-19 in Ethiopia

RIYADH, April 14 (YPA) – The United Nations has indirectly accused Saudi Arabia of seeking to spread the novel Corona virus (COVID-19) in Ethiopia.

On Monday, the United Nations urged Saudi Arabia to suspend the deportation of 200,000 Ethiopian migrant workers who had entered the kingdom illegally, as it carries the risk of spreading Coronavirus infection.

Spokesman for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Alemayehu Seifeselassie, said that Saudi Arabia has so far deported 2,870 Ethiopian immigrants to Addis Ababa since the outbreak of the Corona epidemic in the Kingdom.

Catherine Sozi, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Ethiopia, explained that “the large-scale and unplanned transport of migrants makes the continuation of the virus transference more likely. We therefore call for the suspension of the large-scale deportation temporarily. ”

The Ethiopian authorities confirmed that the deportation procedures from Riyadh continued on a large scale.

While the Ethiopian Minister of Health, Lia Tadesse, revealed that some migrants who were deported from Riyadh to Addis Ababa were confirmed to be infected with the Corona virus, but did not have specific numbers.

YPA