UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on November 20 called for the opening of "humanitarian corridors" in Ethiopia where fighting since November 4 has led thousands of people to flee to Sudan.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has sounded the alarm on the humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia's Tigray region. The organization warned in a statement published on November 17 that thousands of refugees are fleeing ongoing fighting in the area each day, to seek safety in eastern Sudan.
Ten men were deported from Germany to Ethiopia last week. Asylum seeker support groups say deportations should be stopped during the COVID pandemic.
Although hundreds of thousands of Africans are still choosing to migrate along the so-called "Eastern Route" between the Horn of Africa and the Gulf States via Yemen, a growing number are giving up on their dream and going back home. A new report by IOM Nairobi found that many migrants who set off were largely unaware of the migration risks prior to departure.
The IOM said on Sunday that there are at least "8 migrants dead and 12 are missing at sea" after being forced off a boat by smugglers off the coast of Djibouti. The migrants were traveling from Yemen, the UN organization added.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has launched an alarm on the situation of Eastern African refugees. The UN body says millions of people face serious famine and malnutrition due to the socioeconomic consequences of the coronavirus.
In the past two years, more migrants have traveled by boat to Yemen from the Horn of Africa than crossed the Mediterranean. Thousands of them are now trapped and facing multiple risks from the ongoing civil war, the threat of COVID-19, and abuse by human traffickers.
Lebanon's economic crisis is hitting foreign domestic workers particularly hard. Because many employers can no longer afford to pay their wages, many kick the women out onto the streets.
Restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19 in East and Central Africa have left large numbers of migrants stranded. Human rights and refugee groups say the borders should be reopened for asylum seekers.
The conditions for migrants and refugees in Yemen are getting worse amid the global coronavirus pandemic. Not only are refugees and migrants more vulnerable to contracting the dangerous disease, but they are also increasingly facing stigmatization and prejudice.
Thousands of Ethiopian migrants have returned to their home country from Sudan, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia and other countries, according to IOM. Many returned because they lost their jobs abroad due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lebanon is providing temporary shelter for a group of Ethiopian domestic workers abandoned by their employers. It will repatriate some of them, but COVID-19 quarantine measures mean the pressures of returning home are likely to be even greater.