A total of 146,943 people were displaced across 8 Yemeni governorates between 1 and 18 September 2026 as a result of the military escalation, security conditions and growing risks to civilians, according to a report by the Executive Unit for the Management of Displaced Persons Camps, amid government and UN calls to accelerate humanitarian assistance for affected families.
21,000 families displaced across eight governorates
The government unit documented the displacement of 21,583 families in the governorates of Taiz, Lahij, Aden, Hudaydah, Abyan, Hadramawt, Al Mahrah and Shabwah, as clashes intensify between Yemen’s government forces and the Ansar Allah movement, known as the Houthis, prompting more civilians to flee combat zones.
Growing pressure on families and host communities
Most of these families settled with host families and in several districts of the governorate, adding to pressure on local communities receiving displaced people as displacement continues. The Executive Unit said most displaced families were facing difficult living conditions after suddenly losing their homes, sources of income and property.
It said there were gaps and urgent needs including emergency shelter, food, drinking water, sanitation services and healthcare. Needs also include protection for children, women, older people and people with disabilities.
Calls for an urgent humanitarian response
The unit called for immediate delivery of life-saving assistance alongside sectoral assessments, warning that a delayed response could worsen the crisis and increase pressure on host communities. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, meanwhile, said escalating fighting along Yemen’s western coast since the beginning of September had driven thousands of families to flee in search of safety.
It added that the number of displaced people continued to rise as the escalation persisted in various parts of the country, and called for urgent international support for displaced and refugee families. The agency said more than 100,000 people had been forced to leave their homes inside Yemen, while around 3,000 others had crossed the sea to Djibouti.
It said women and children made up more than half of the Yemeni refugees crossing the sea towards Djibouti. The number of internally displaced people in Yemen stood at 4.8 million before the latest escalation, according to the agency, bringing the total to nearly 5 million as a result of the war that has continued for 12 years. The agency describes the situation in Yemen as one of the world’s largest displacement crises.
Yemen has been witnessing a new round of fighting for around 3 months, following nearly 4 years of de-escalation and reduced hostilities, between government forces backed by the Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy and the Houthis. The Yemeni government accuses Iran of supporting the group.
