Upon arrival at Yemen’s Arabian Sea coast Somalis can be taken to reception centres in Mayfa’a and Ahwar and registered. Somalis who arrive on Yemen’s Red Sea coast can be transported to Kharaz reception centre for registration.
In most cases, non-Somalis arriving along the Arabian Sea coast can be transported to reception centres for registration as asylum seekers if they wish. At registration they are issued attestation letters and have the opportunity to reach Aden or Sana’a by their own means for to lodge their asylum claims with the UN Refugee Agency.
However non-Somalis arriving along the Red Sea Coast cannot be transported for registration and face the risk of arrest and deportation. Therefore most of the non–Somali caseload on the Red Sea Coast prefers being smuggled onwards.
