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Kassala / El Gedaref – Interior Minister Lieutenant General El Tereifi Idris announced that the number of Ethiopian refugees in eastern Sudan has risen to 36,000, during the Sudanese government cabinet meeting yesterday.
He expects an increase in the flow of refugees, highlighting the importance of the role of the international community in providing aid and shelter, and the challenges faced by the Sudanese authorities.
Women, men and children have been crossing the border at a rate of 4,000 a day since November 10, rapidly outstripping humanitarian response capacity on the ground, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
The representative of Kassala refugee housing, Yagub Mohamed Yagub, explained that the average daily influx of refugees ranges from 550 to 600 people. He said the number of refugees currently registered in Kassala has reached 16,605.
Following a visit to the Hamdayat border crossing, Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Idris Ali Mohamed stated that “the commission will endeavor to coordinate with all voluntary and humanitarian organizations to meet the needs of the refugees.”
UNHCR and its partners are supporting the Sudanese government with humanitarian assistance at the borders, where the number of refugees crossing the border has already outpaced the agency’s preparations.
“Together with all the agencies, we have developed a response plan for about 20,000 people,” Axel Bisschop told UNHCR’s press conference in Geneva today. “The new planning figure is around 200,000.”
Yesterday, the EU announced the provision of a funding of four million euros in emergency aid to help Ethiopian refugees arriving in Sudan. According to the statement, the funding will support NGOs and UN agencies in the states of Kassala and El Gedaref, which are the most affected by the new arrivals.
Refugees will receive basic items such as shelter, access to food and medical care, sanitation and hygiene and protection.
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Janez Lenarčič, EU Commissioner for Crisis Management, said: “The ongoing conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region is creating a real humanitarian crisis. With this seed funding, we will help Ethiopian refugees who have had to leave. The solution, however, lies in the cessation of hostilities. We urge the parties to the conflict in Ethiopia to allow full and unrestricted access for humanitarian workers to all areas affected by the fighting. Civilians are paying the price for this conflict: they must be protected and international humanitarian law respected. I commend Sudan’s willingness to offer refuge to Ethiopians fleeing the conflict. “
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