IOM reports movement in both directions as 3,700 refugees reach Djibouti from Yemen

6 October 2026

Djibouti is facing overlapping emergencies as refugees fleeing the conflict in Yemen arrive on its shores while migrants continue to travel in the opposite direction, the International Organization for Migration said.
More than 3,700 refugees reached the Horn of Africa country in the preceding three weeks after a dangerous crossing of the Red Sea, said Alexandre Coissac, head of IOM's mission in Djibouti, briefing journalists in Geneva.
At the same time IOM has recorded more than 20,000 journeys made from Ethiopia since 10 September by migrants heading for Yemen in the hope of finding work in the Gulf, and a further 539 Ethiopian migrants arrived from Yemen on their way home.
Between 20 and 30 September more than 3,000 stranded migrants were observed along migratory routes in Djibouti, facing dehydration, exhaustion and shortages of food and water.
IOM said it had received reports of migrants dying in the desert near the border with Ethiopia, and that migrants were increasingly using secondary routes, making them harder to reach.
Mr Coissac said most migrants bound for Yemen were unaware of the grave situation there as fighting between government and Houthi forces intensifies.