ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- Some 50,000 Ethiopians have fled into neighboring Kenya, seeking safety following violent clashes in southern Ethiopia, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said.
The UN migration agency warned, in a statement issued Thursday, that further arrivals could place additional pressure on already stretched local services and resources.
IOM data showed that an estimated 50,000 people had arrived in Moyale, Marsabit County, as of Thursday. They are staying with local communities along the border or sheltering at five temporary sites.
As the situation continues to evolve, IOM said the Kenyan government and inter-agency partners are planning a response for up to 80,000 people, anticipating further arrivals and growing humanitarian needs.
"The situation remains fluid, and the number of arrivals could increase in the coming days," IOM Kenya Chief of Mission Nomagugu Ncube said in the statement.
Noting that most of the displaced are being sheltered by local communities, Ncube stressed that meeting their immediate needs, while also supporting the communities who are now hosting thousands, is "an urgent priority."
The UN agency stressed that newly arrived populations urgently need basic supplies, safe water, emergency shelter, healthcare services, critical protection and sanitation support.
The arrivals follow a week of deadly intercommunal clashes between Ethiopia's Somali and Oromo communities in and around Moyale, a border town. Media reports have linked the violence, which has reportedly killed scores of people on both sides, to tensions over a flag dispute. ■
