At least 112,000 people have been displaced inside Yemen within the last two weeks as fighting continues along the country’s west coast amid a renewed conflict, while nearly 3,000 have fled by sea to Djibouti, the United Nations migration agency said on Friday (September 18, 2026). Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have stepped up attacks on Saudi cities and energy infrastructure while advancing along Yemen’s Red Sea coast towards the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key shipping route.
Additionally, authorities in Somaliland and Puntland have also reported increased arrivals from Yemen, including Yemeni refugees and Somali refugee returnees, though numbers remain in the hundreds for now, UNHCR said. Most fleeing are Yemeni families seeking refuge in Djibouti, but IOM is also beginning to see a small number of migrants, mainly from Ethiopia, heading in the same direction. UN agencies described the latest fighting as being a crisis on top of multiple crises, as the country’s health services and economy have been shattered amid a long civil war between forces of the internationally recognised, Saudi-backed administration and the Houthis, creating one of the world’s biggest humanitarian crises.
The government of Djibouti is preparing for the arrival of up to 10,000 refugees – which will add acute pressure on the country’s health care and education services, she said.
The UN International Organization for Migration said people are fleeing on overcrowded boats and arriving with very limited food and water.
