As many as 50,000 people have crossed from Ethiopia into Kenya in less than a week to escape deadly clashes around the border town of Moyale, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said, warning that food is now the most urgent need for the new arrivals.

UNHCR's Kenya representative, Fatima Mohammed-Cole, said the figure, which covers arrivals since 22 October, came from local authorities and remained subject to verification as people continued to arrive. The agency had earlier put the number at about 36,000, showing how quickly the influx has grown.

What sparked the fighting

The violence pits security forces and armed civilians from Ethiopia's Oromia and Somali regional states against each other, particularly the Borana and Garre communities. According to Anadolu and UN reports, tensions rose over the raising of the Somali regional state flag and the opening of a new administrative office in a part of Moyale claimed by Oromia.

The killing of a 13-year-old girl in an exchange of gunfire on 18 October set off protests and business closures, before heavy fighting broke out on 22 October and spread to several settlements in southern Ethiopia. Each community blames the other, and residents report deaths, injuries and the destruction of homes and shops.

Pressure on Moyale

Many of those fleeing are women and children. Some are staying with relatives and host families, while others are sheltering in schools, churches and mosques. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) said more than 15,000 people were in eight temporary shelters, including St Mary's Catholic Church, Harhosha Secondary School and Manyatta Burji, with more than 20,000 others living with relatives and friends.

The commission said the influx was straining food, clean water, sanitation and health services, and warned that rain in the area raised the risk of disease outbreaks. Four women have given birth at reception sites. "The protection of life and human dignity cannot be postponed," KNCHR said, urging the Ministry of Health and Marsabit County to deploy medical teams.

The Kenya Red Cross has reported water and sanitation shortages at some camps and is monitoring three suspected measles cases, according to local reports.

The aid response

  • UNHCR has sent an emergency team to Moyale and is mobilising household items and temporary shelter for nearly 12,000 people, with plans to scale up.
  • It is working with the Kenya Red Cross, IOM, UNICEF, WFP and Kenya's Department of Refugee Services.
  • Agencies are looking for safer accommodation further away from the border.

KNCHR also reminded authorities that Kenya's Refugees Act and the principle of non-refoulement bar sending people back to places where they face serious harm, saying reception and screening "must therefore be humane and lawful".

Photos: Al Jazeera (displaced Ethiopians in Moyale); Middle East Monitor/Anadolu. Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.