ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ethiopia is appealing for $1.3 billion from the international community to assist 8.3 million people displaced by ethnic conflict.

Mitiku Kassa, Ethiopia's disaster prevention chief, speaking at a press conference in the capital on Thursday said most of the displaced are in the country's Oromia and Somalia regions.

He said Ethiopia's number of internally displaced people nearly doubled in 2018 creating the need for humanitarian assistance in 2019.

Ethiopia was engulfed in ethnic-based conflicts in several parts of the country in recent months, notably between the Oromo and Somali ethnic groups, over identity questions and conflicts over resources.

In addition to its own displaced and needy people, Ethiopia is also home to nearly 1 million refugees from neighboring countries like South Sudan and Somalia.