UK issues travel warning for Moyale as up to 50,000 Ethiopians flee to Kenya. IOM appeals for $8.9M as 71% of displaced families have no food.
By: East African Report News Desk | Sweden / Moyale / Kakuma, Rift Valley / Nairobi | 10 November 2026
MOYALE — The border town of Moyale is now on the frontline of a crisis it did not start.
For nearly three weeks, fighting between forces from Ethiopia’s Oromia and Somali regions has raged on the Ethiopian side of Moyale, pushing more than 50,000 Ethiopians across the border into Kenya, according to the Kenya Red Cross and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
On 6 November, the United Kingdom updated its travel advice for Kenya, advising British nationals against all but essential travel to Moyale Town and areas within five kilometres of the Ethiopia border.
The warning comes as humanitarian agencies warn the situation is getting worse by the day.
IOM Appeals for $8.9 Million
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has launched an emergency appeal for $8.9 million to provide food, shelter, clean water and medical aid to displaced families in Moyale.
According to a rapid assessment, 71% of displaced households in Moyale have no food, while many are sleeping in the open without blankets, cooking utensils or bedding.
> “We walked two days with nothing but the clothes we wear,” said Aisha, a mother of three from Ethiopia. “There is no food, no water — we need help now.”
Many of the arrivals are women and children. Some women gave birth while fleeing, according to witnesses who spoke to Al Jazeera.
Two Women Killed by Stray Bullets
Kenya’s Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, who visited Moyale on 5 November with a high-level security delegation, confirmed that two women — one Kenyan and one Ethiopian — have died after being hit by stray bullets, while several others sustained injuries.
Residents from border settlements including Somare, Sessi, Biashara, Lami, and Heillu estates have reported heavy nighttime fighting, damaged houses and a vehicle hit in Lami estate.
Kenyan families living near the border have also been forced to flee their homes after stray bullets and rocket-propelled grenades landed on the Kenyan side.
Why Is Moyale Fighting?
The conflict monitoring organization ACLED traced the latest fighting to an 18 October confrontation over the opening of a Somali regional administration office and the raising of its flag in a disputed part of Ethiopian Moyale.
The Ethiopian town is divided between the Oromia and Somali regional administrations. The fighting is rooted in a longstanding boundary dispute between the Borana, who are Oromo, and the Garre, who are Somali.
Exodus to Nairobi
Reports indicate about 10 buses carrying 62 passengers each are leaving Moyale for Nairobi daily, as families seek safety further south.
Meanwhile, in Moyale, over 35,000 people are now sheltering in temporary displacement sites, while the rest are staying with host families, stretching already limited resources.
UNHCR has deployed an emergency team to Moyale and is working closely with the Government of Kenya, through the Department of Refugee Services (DRS) and county authorities, alongside IOM, UNICEF, WFP, the Kenya Red Cross Society and other humanitarian partners.
UNHCR Representative in Kenya, Fatima Mohammed-Cole, thanked the Kenyan government for keeping its border open and urged for urgent support.
What to Watch
East African Report will continue to follow:
– Whether Kenya-Ethiopia talks can stop the fighting in Ethiopian Moyale
– The humanitarian response for the more than 50,000 new arrivals in Marsabit County
– The security situation for Kenyan communities in Somare, Sessi, Biashara, Lami and Heillu
© East African Report
