A rights organization reports that Saudi Arabian border guards shot and fatally wounded hundreds of Ethiopian migrants.

In Saudi Arabia, border guards have reportedly used machine guns and mortars against Ethiopians attempting to cross into the kingdom from Yemen, potentially resulting in the deaths of hundreds of unarmed migrants in recent years, according to a report released by Human Rights Watch on Monday. The rights group cited eyewitness testimonies of attacks by troops and provided images depicting deceased bodies and burial sites along migrant routes, suggesting that the death toll could possibly reach into the thousands. The United Nations has raised concerns about Saudi Arabia's troops firing upon migrants along its southern border with war-torn Yemen.

A Saudi government official, speaking anonymously as he lacked authorization to speak publicly, dismissed the Human Rights Watch report as "unfounded and not based on reliable sources," although no evidence was provided to support this claim. Yemen's Houthi rebels, alleged to profit from smuggling migrants across the border, did not respond to requests for comment.

Approximately 750,000 Ethiopians reside in Saudi Arabia, with an estimated 450,000 having entered the kingdom without authorization, according to 2022 statistics from the International Organization for Migration. The civil war in Ethiopia's Tigray region, ongoing for two years, has displaced tens of thousands of people. In response to youth unemployment issues, Saudi Arabia has repatriated thousands of Ethiopians in coordination with Addis Ababa.

Human Rights Watch interviewed 38 Ethiopian migrants and four relatives of individuals who attempted border crossings between March 2022 and June 2023, many of whom reported witnessing Saudi guards shooting at migrants or using explosives against groups. The organization also analyzed over 350 videos and photographs from social media and other sources, along with satellite imagery captured between February 2022 and July 2023, revealing dead and wounded migrants, expanding Saudi border security infrastructure, and migrant routes.

Satellite imagery corroborated the presence of migrant camps near the Saudi-Yemen border, consistent with Human Rights Watch's findings. The UN has stated that Houthi-controlled immigration offices cooperate with traffickers to direct migrants to Saudi Arabia, earning substantial profits in the process.

Despite efforts to end the war, skirmishes persist along the Saudi-Yemen border, with migrants from Ethiopia facing detention, abuse, and death in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The UN has expressed increasing concerns about Saudi forces attacking migrants entering from Yemen, citing allegations of cross-border artillery shelling and small arms fire causing numerous fatalities and injuries.

Saudi Arabia has denied engaging in systematic killings on the border, rejecting the UN's allegations while acknowledging limited information provided for verification.