More than 51,000 Ethiopian migrants travel on to Yemen from Djibouti
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Kassataya
More than 57,000 people arrived in Djibouti from Ethiopia between January and June, and more than 51,000 continued on to Yemen, according to International Organization for Migration data provided to Afrique XXI. In Obock, northern Djibouti, Ethiopian migrants fleeing the war in Tigray take dangerous routes to the Arabian Peninsula, reports Afrique XXI.
Between January and June 2026, more than 51,000 Ethiopian migrants continued from Djibouti to Yemen, according to data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) provided to Afrique XXI. Over the same period, more than 57,000 people from Ethiopia arrived in Djibouti.
In Obock, in northern Djibouti, migrants cross the desert and then the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to reach Yemen and, some of them, try to continue on to Saudi Arabia. Kyrad, a 15-year-old Ethiopian from Tigray, walked for five weeks before reaching the area. She says more than half of the people travelling with her died on the way. Her brother, who has been arrested, beaten and deported during four previous attempts to reach Saudi Arabia, is preparing to set off again.
People smugglers organise departures from villages in the Obock region. One of them, Omar, acknowledges to Afrique XXI that he is involved in human trafficking and says the activity provides for his family. The migrants interviewed by the outlet come from Tigray, where fighting resumed on 23 September 2026; one says he fled forced mobilisation, which has intensified since May.
The crossings take place in a region marked by deadly shipwrecks. On 11 October, 109 migrants, including 15 children, died off Djibouti, according to a toll published earlier. On 20 October, Djibouti’s National Human Rights Commission paid tribute to the 139 victims of another shipwreck in Obock reported by our newsroom.
