The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned that a major humanitarian crisis is evolving as an unprecedented number of Ethiopian refugees continue to arrive in neighboring Sudan with 27,000 people having already crossed the border, UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch said in a statement on Tuesday
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th November, 2020) The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned that a major humanitarian crisis is evolving as an unprecedented number of Ethiopian refugees continue to arrive in neighboring Sudan with 27,000 people having already crossed the border, UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch said in a statement on Tuesday.
"UNHCR is warning that a full-scale humanitarian crisis is unfolding as thousands of refugees flee ongoing fighting in Ethiopia's Tigray region each day to seek safety in eastern Sudan - an influx unseen over the last two decades in this part of the country," Baloch said. "More than 27,000 have now crossed into Sudan through the Hamdayet border in Kassala State, the Lugdi in Gedaref State and a new location further south at Aderafi border where Ethiopian refugees started crossing over the weekend."
Clashes broke out in Tigray earlier this month after Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accused the Tigray People's Liberation Front of having its forces attack and loot a military camp hosting Federal troops. He launched a security operation against the autonomous northwestern region, stoking anger among the ethnic Tigrayan minority. Tigrayan rebels fired rockets across the border into the capital of Eritrea, which they accuse of helping Abiy with attacks on them.
Since the escalation of tensions, some 4,000 people have been crossing the border per day, Baloch said.
"Refugees fleeing the fighting continue to arrive exhausted from the long trek to safety, with few belonging," he said.
Humanitarian partners and the Sudanese government support refugees at the borders, providing clean water, soap, sleeping mats, hot meals and conducting health screenings.
Baloch said the UN refugee agency stands ready to assist the displaced in Tigray when access and security allows.
He also warned that the conflict was also a concern for nearly 100,000 Eritrean refugees in Tigray who rely on aid from UNHCR and its partners.
"Potential for further displacement of refugees inside the country is increasingly a real possibility," he added.
The spokesman further reiterated UNHCR's call for a ceasefire and urged all parties to protect civilians in Tigray.
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