The dispute between the BBC World Service and Bob Geldof over the diversion of aid money raised in the 1980s Live Aid concerts has continued to escalate, with Ethiopia’s top diplomat to Britain calling for an official apology from the broadcaster.
Ethiopia’s ambassador to Britain, Berhanu Kebede, said today that the BBC had lost its credibility in Africa because of a report examining where Live Aid money designated for famine relief actually went. As previously reported in TSR, the BBC’s Africa editor Martin Plaut aired claims from former Ethiopian rebels that large sums of money – up to 95 per cent – may have been siphoned off to rebel groups, including for the purpose of buying arms.
Speaking to The Observer, Kebede echoed calls from Bob Geldof – the founder and face of the Live Aid efforts – for a full apology from the BBC.
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