Nearly 130,000 people have been displaced across seven governorates in Yemen as escalating insecurity forces entire communities to flee — many of them for the second or third time — the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) reported on Monday, 22 September 2025. The figure marks a sharp acceleration in displacement, with the toll rising by 11,352 in just three days.

Displacement Numbers Climbing Rapidly

Othman Belbeisi, IOM Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, underlined the pace of deterioration. 'The numbers keep climbing. On September 18 we recorded 118,086 displaced people. Three days later, the figure has risen by 11,352,' he said.

According to the latest IOM data, Taiz Governorate bears the heaviest burden, hosting 73,494 displaced individuals — more than half the national total. The IOM also reported that as of Sunday evening, 3,106 people had crossed the Red Sea from Yemen to Djibouti, reflecting the extent to which the crisis is spilling beyond Yemen's borders.

Airstrikes and Ground Battles Intensify

Yemen's Houthi group said on Sunday that 28 airstrikes had hit three provinces over the preceding 24 hours, amid continued ground battles between Houthi fighters and Yemeni government forces across multiple fronts. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement that F-15 and Typhoon fighter jets, operating from the Saudi air bases of Khamis Mushait and Taif, carried out strikes in the southwestern province of Taiz, the northeastern oil-rich province of Marib, and the northern province of Al-Jawf. Sarea put the cumulative number of airstrikes since the latest escalation began at 760. Saudi Arabia had not immediately commented on the latest figures.

Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported that an airstrike struck a telecommunications tower in Al-Jawf, while areas of northern Saada province along the Saudi border came under artillery fire. The aerial operations coincided with ground fighting in southwestern Yemen, where control of frontline positions has shifted repeatedly in recent days.

Government Forces Report Partial Gains in Taiz

A government military source said on Sunday that government forces had retaken several positions in western Taiz, though the broader front lines remained largely unchanged amid fierce fighting. The shifting battlefield underscores the intractability of a conflict that has now dragged on for over a decade.

A Decade of War and Humanitarian Collapse

Yemen has been engulfed in conflict since 2014, when the Houthi group seized control of parts of the country, including the capital Sanaa. A Saudi-led military coalition intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognised government, setting off a prolonged war that has layered repeated waves of displacement, economic collapse, and recurring natural disasters onto the Yemeni population. Years of cumulative crisis have left millions dependent on humanitarian assistance, with the country consistently ranking among the world's worst humanitarian emergencies.

The latest IOM figures suggest the situation is worsening rather than stabilising, raising fresh questions about the capacity of international agencies to respond. How the conflict evolves on the Taiz and Marib fronts in the coming days will likely determine whether displacement numbers continue their upward trajectory.