More than 200,000 displaced as fighting escalates in Yemen, UN says

With 3,700 fleeing to Djibouti amid Houthi clashes, the UN warns three in four families in parts of Yemen face hunger.An internally displaced Yemeni boy carries firewood at a makeshift camp for the internally displaced in the northern Hajjah governorate [Essa Ahmed/AFP]Published On 7 Oct 20267 Oct 2026More than 200,000 people have been displaced from their homes since fighting in Yemen escalated in recent weeks, according to data released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).The IOM described the crisis in a statement on Wednesday as alarming, with displacement figures surging from 76,000 in mid-September to more than 200,000.“People are running for their lives and finding nowhere safe to go,” said IOM Director General Amy Pope, calling for increased funding amid soaring needs for food and shelter.Yemen is experiencing its most serious escalation in fighting since a UN-brokered truce largely halted major cross-border attacks in 2022.The Iran-backed Houthis, who already control most of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, seized the country’s entire Red Sea coast last month from Saudi-backed forces of the internationally recognised government based in the so...