IOM Ethiopia relocated 1,061 Sudanese and South Sudanese refugees from Ashura temporary camp to the new Tsore camp in Benishangul Gumuz region on 15 October 2015.

The organization has now relocated 5,519 refugees from Ashura to Tsore since 22 July 2015. The new camp was established and approved by UNHCR and Ethiopia’s Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs (ARRA.)  

The Benishangul Gumuz region is one of the major entry points for refugees fleeing clan clashes and conflict in Sudan and South Sudan.

“My family and I fled the war. There were air raids and shelling. We suffered walking to the Ethiopian border and were very hungry and thirsty. Some friends have even perished on the way,” said Mustefa Abur, a 46-year-old refugee, who recalls how he fled South Sudan’s Upper Nile State. “We have been welcomed here and received food and transport to camps from UNHCR and IOM.”

Other refugees, such as Mahlak and her husband Salim Ramadan, who were in Ashura for two years, have expressed their hope that their children will be able to access proper education in the new camp.

With the last convoy departing yesterday (15/10), all the refugee population at Ashura has now been relocated to Tsore. In the coming weeks, IOM will provide relocation assistance from Sherkole to Tsore.

The movement was made possible through the financial support from the US State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM).

For further information, please contact Alemayehu Seifeselassie at IOM Ethiopia, Tel: +251.11. 6611117 (Ext. 455), Mobile: +251.91.163-9082 - Email: salemayehu@iom.int