The UN and Ethiopia have agreed to allow aid into the country’s conflict-torn Tigray region.
UN spokesman Saviano Abreu says an assessment mission began today.
Food and medicines are said to be running out for millions of people.
Hundreds of people have reportedly been killed in the month-long fighting between the federal army and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
The Ethiopian government said the regional capital Mekelle was seized over the weekend but TPLF leaders say they are still fighting near the city.