UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations and the Ethiopian government have reached an agreement on humanitarian access to areas under its control in the conflict-torn Tigray region, UN humanitarians said on Wednesday.

Families fetch water from a UNICEF supported well in Kilte Awlalo in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. (Photo: UNICEF)

The accord "seeks to enable unimpeded, sustained and secure access for humanitarian personnel and services in areas under the control of the federal government in Tigray and the bordering areas of Amhara and Afar regions," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

An assessment and response mission already is under way to the east in Afar's border areas to reach the internally displaced.

"We, along with our humanitarian partners in Ethiopia, are engaging with the federal government and all parties to the conflict to ensure that humanitarian action in Tigray, Amhara and Afar regions is strictly based on needs," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The agreement aims to help people without distinction of any kind other than the urgency of their needs, Dujarric told a regular press briefing.

The world organization and humanitarian partners have been seeking access to the affected areas for weeks.

More than 800,000 people already were in urgent need of assistance in Tigray, including about 96,000 Eritrean refugees and nearly 600,000 people who were relying on food aid, humanitarians said.

About 46,000 people fled into Sudan, the UN Refugee Agency reported earlier in the week.

A Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) attack on an Ethiopian National Defense Force division in Tigray touched off a Nov. 4 government military operation against the TPLF, leading to the humanitarian crisis.