About 1,400 people reportedly flee Yemen for Djibouti in 24 hours
Djibouti’s economy and finance minister reported a sharp influx as fighting displaced at least 46,000 people inside Yemen, according to the IOM.
About 1,400 people reportedly fled Yemen for Djibouti within 24 hours, according to Djibouti’s economy and finance minister, as Houthi fighters tightened their grip around the Bab-el-Mandeb strait.
Arrivals included women and children in the coastal city of Obock, about 20 kilometres from Yemen. The minister separately said about 500 people reached Obock after being rescued at sea when their boats ran out of fuel.
The International Organization for Migration said at least 46,000 people had been displaced inside Yemen since fighting escalated the previous week. The organisation warned that more vulnerable people were expected to arrive in Djibouti in the coming days.
The reported movement follows source-reported Houthi advances, including the seizure of the Red Sea port city of Mocha and control of nearby coastline and islands around the strait. The claims have not been independently confirmed in the material.
Obock has been an established arrival point for people fleeing Yemen. Djibouti hosted more than 36,000 registered refugees and asylum seekers, mainly from Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen, according to UNHCR figures from March 2026.
