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In Pictures

News|Humanitarian Crises

In Pictures: War forces thousands of Ethiopians into Sudan

Thousands of refugees have fled Africa’s second most populous country, crowding into boats to cross a river to Sudan.

Tigrayan refugees who fled the conflict in the Ethiopia's Tigray arrive on the banks of the Tekeze River on the Sudan-Ethiopia border, in Hamdayet, eastern Sudan [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Published On 22 Dec 202022 Dec 2020
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Tens of thousands of Ethiopians who, just weeks ago, were contemplating the harvest season, now huddle in refugee camps in Sudan.

They ran from fields and homes and hospital rooms as months of tensions between Ethiopia’s government and that of its defiant Tigray region erupted into deadly fighting.

They took with them their donkeys, beds, motorcycles and colourful cloths that they now drape over pipes to create shelters.

Others left their shoes behind as they crossed a river to safety.

Some walked for days to reach the border, and once they did, they were packed into buses or trucks for an arduous, 11-hour journey to a camp.

As one vehicle left, a baby cried hysterically, and his brother held the infant towards the window for fresh air, explaining that the child was hungry and dehydrated and the bus too crowded.

Once at the camp, they waited for food and word from loved ones.

Some crowd around a tap for hours before they can fill up their buckets. Children as young as seven struggle to lift the heavy jugs on to their backs.

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The Tigray region remains largely cut off from the world, but still, many of the refugees surround a small TV screen in the hopes of learning what might be happening back home.

For many, it is their only source of information since they lost mobile phones along the way.

Refugees who fled the conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region ride a bus headed to the Village 8 temporary shelter near the Sudan-Ethiopia border. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
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Ethnic Tigrayan survivor Abrahaley Minasbo, 22, from Mai Kadra, Ethiopia, shows his wounds from machetes, inside a shelter at Hamdayat near the Sudan-Ethiopia border. Abrahaley told The Associated Press he was attacked by members of the Ethiopian government-allied gang Al Fano on November 9. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
An aid worker organises Tigrayan refugees lining up to receive cooked rice and lentils, at Umm Rakouba refugee camp. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Refugees arrive on the banks of the Tekeze River on the Sudan-Ethiopia border. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Refugees wait for rice served by Sudanese local volunteers at Umm Rakouba refugee camp in Qadarif. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Ethnic Tigrayan survivor Guesh Tedla, 54, from Rawyan, Ethiopia, shows his wounds inside a shelter near the Sudan-Ethiopia border. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
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Tigrayan refugee children fight over medical masks and sanitiser handed out by volunteers in Umm Rakouba refugee camp. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Shoes left behind belonging to Tigrayan refugees are scattered near the banks of the Tekeze River on the Sudan-Ethiopia border. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Refugees carry their belongings from a boat after arriving on the banks of the Tekeze River on the Sudan-Ethiopia border. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
A Tigrayan woman holds her malnourished and severely dehydrated baby as nurses give him IV fluids. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Tigrayan women pray during Sunday mass at a church. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Refugees watch news on television at the Umm Rakouba refugee camp in Qadarif, eastern Sudan. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
A Tigrayan woman waits for treatment at a clinic in Umm Rakouba refugee camp in Qadarif. Misery continues for the refugees in Sudan, with little food, medicine, shelter, funding and little or no contact with loved ones left behind in Tigray. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]
Tigrayan people who fled the conflict arrive on a bus at Umm Rakouba refugee camp. [Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo]


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