Tigray rebels accused the African Union (AU) on Sunday of "bias" following the appointment by the pan-African organization of a mediator in the conflict that has been tearing northern Ethiopia apart for nearly a year.

"It would be naive to think that this mission could work," said on Twitter the spokesman for the rebels Getachew Reda, three days after the appointment of former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo as representative of the AU in the Horn of Africa with the mission to "promote peace, security, stability, and political dialogue".

"Resolving a crisis requires at least the recognition of the existence, if not the importance, of a problem," he wrote.

"We find it difficult to understand how one can expect a constructive role from an organization that has given full meaning to the word partiality," he concluded.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, for his part, has repeatedly rejected any proposal to hold talks with the group.

Addis Ababa has designated the TPLF a terrorist organization.

In late June, government forces withdrew from the Tigray regional capital of Mekelle after Addis Ababa announced a ceasefire.

The rebels rejected the offer and attacked the neighboring Amhara and Afar regions in their bid to march on the capital.

They have been accused of committing war crimes in the process.

Abiy shuttles to Entebbe, Kigali

The conflict has been a sensitive issue for the African Union, and Ethiopia's allies have prevented any discussion of the issue at the UN Security Council.

The conflict which was sparked last November by an attack on a federal army base by TPLF forces has threatened to further destabilize Africa's second-most populous country.

On Sunday, Abiy met with the leaders of Uganda and Rwanda in Entebbe and Kigali respectively.

According to the UN, the conflict has already left some 400,000 people in a near-famine situation. - Africanews with AFP

Waitrose is offering lorry drivers the same salaries as senior executives after a national shortage caused widespread supply chain issues across the UK.

The supermarket told Yahoo News it is prepared to pay Large Good Vehicle (LGV) drivers an average salary of £45,000 for a 45 to 48 hour week.

It comes as the same salary for roles like a senior SEO executive in London, which is currently being advertised for up to £45,000.

A specific shift pattern in Bracknell will even be paid £53,780 a year, which would be higher than senior executive roles, a pension specialist and a finance analyst roles at Waitrose.

Read: Politicians and military 'culpable' for going into war without 'thinking fully about the consequences', former RAF officer says

In a statement, Waitrose said: "The salary increases - which follow a review of LGV driver rates in the Partnership - are designed to ensure that both retailers can continue to recruit LGV drivers at market competitive rates." 

In July, the NHS contact tracing app caused mayhem as hundreds of thousands of workers were "pinged" so that they had to self-isolate. 

The disruption was among several factors that has led to a shortage in lorry drivers, causing delays to supermarket deliveries with photos showing empty shelves in stores across the UK.

Waitrose said that 900 drivers already employed by the supermarket will benefit from the up to £5,000 pay increase. 

Meanwhile, new drivers will get a £1,000 joining bonus as it tackles the staff shortages. 

In a statement, Mark Robinson, Director of Supply Chain for the John Lewis Partnership, said: “There’s never been a better time to get behind the wheel for Waitrose and John Lewis. 

"We’re responding quickly to the national driver shortage by ensuring our drivers are paid competitively and by investing in training for the future.

“These changes will mean that we can continue to serve our customers well and get them the products they need.” Yahoo News

A bomb attack at Kabul airport in Afghanistan yesterday made an already difficult evacuation operation even harder as it entered into its final hours.

Evacuation flights have been taking place since the Taliban took hold of the country two weeks ago, but Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said it is likely that people eligible to be resettled in the UK will be left behind as the effort is in its "final hours".

The final British flights out of Afghanistan were set to leave on Friday.

Wallace told Sky News: "We at 4.30 this morning, UK-time, closed the Baron Hotel, shut the processing centre and the gates were closed at Abbey Gate.

"We will process the people that we've brought with us, the 1,000 people approximately in the airfield now and we will seek a way to continue to find a few people in the crowds where we can, but overall the main processing is now closed and we have a matter of hours.

"The sad fact is not every single one will get out.

"The threat is obviously going to grow the closer we get to leaving."

Many countries have been involved in the evacuation process, desperately trying to repatriate their citizens and offer refuge for Afghans who have worked with them during the 20-year occupation. 

The United States, Great Britain and Germany have enabled the most amount of people to flee the country. But it has been a global effort.

Here are the details of the evacuation effort by country:

UK

So far, Britain has evacuated more than 13,700 British nationals and Afghans, representing the second biggest airlift by the country's air force after the Berlin Airlift in 1949, the ministry said.

US

Around 105,000 people have been evacuated by the US since 14 August the White House said on Friday.

Germany

The German military evacuated 5,347 people, including more than 4,100 Afghans.

France

The French Defence Ministry said that more than 100 French nationals and more than 2,500 Afghans had reached French soil after being evacuated from Kabul.

Italy

Italy said that 4,832 Afghans had been brought out of Afghanistan by their military.

Watch: Interpreters unable to escape describe terror as they hide from Taliban

 

 

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Sweden

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Friday a total of 1,100 people had been evacuated, including all locally employed embassy staff and their families.

Belgium

Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said just over 1,400 people were evacuated by Belgian forces.

Ireland

Ireland's foreign ministry evacuated 36 Irish citizens but is aware of approximately 60 Irish citizens and family members plus a further 15 Afghan citizens with Irish residency who are still in the country and have requested assistance.

Canada

Canadian forces in Kabul ended evacuation efforts for their citizens and Afghans on Thursday.

|cting chief of the defence staff General Wayne Eyre said they had evacuated or facilitated the evacuation of around 3,700 Canadian and Afghan citizens.

Turkey

Turkey has evacuated at least 1,400 people from Afghanistan, including around 1,000 Turkish citizens.

Spain

Over the course of its rescue mission Spain evacuated 1,898 Afghans who had worked with Western countries, the United Nations or the European Union.

Poland

Poland has evacuated roughly 900 people from Afghanistan, including around 300 women and 300 children.

Hungary

Hungary airlifted 540 people, including Hungarian citizens and Afghans and their families who worked for Hungarian forces previously.

Denmark

Denmark has airlifted around 1,000 people from Afghanistan including diplomatic staff, their families, former interpreters, Danish citizens and people from allied countries, its defence ministry said.

Netherlands

The Dutch government said it had evacuated 2,500 people from Afghanistan.

Austria

Austria relied on Germany and other countries to help with its evacuation. So far 89 people with Austrian citizenship or residency have been airlifted out, while another two to three dozen people are still in Afghanistan, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg told national broadcaster ORF on Wednesday.

Switzerland

Switzerland, also relying on Germany and the United States to help with its evacuation efforts, has got 292 people out of Afghanistan, but 15 Swiss citizens remain in Afghanistan with no more Swiss evacuation flights planned.

Qatar

Qatar said on Thursday it had so far helped evacuate more than 40,000 people to Doha and "evacuation efforts will continue in the coming days in consultation with international partners."

UAE

The UAE said it had helped evacuate 36,500 people to date, including 8,500 coming to the UAE via its national carriers or airports.

India

India has airlifted 565 people, most of them embassy personnel and citizens living there but also dozens of Afghans including Afghan Sikhs and Hindus, a government official said on condition of anonymity.

Australia

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday that Australia had evacuated 4,100 people, including over 3,200 citizens and Afghans with Australian visas. Morrison acknowledged some Australian visa holders remain in Afghanistan, though he said Canberra did not know exact numbers.

New Zealand

New Zealand’s Defence Force (NZDF) ran three flights out of Kabul and according to preliminary numbers, at least 276 New Zealand nationals and permanent residents, their families and other visa holders were evacuated, it said. Yahoo News