Eritrean diaspora

[7] In the mid-1950s, one-third of Eritreans lived abroad and emigration has increased largely due to political instability in the country and surrounding region.

During the era, the Derg government used strategic bombing in Eritrea that caused an exodus to Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and other countries in the Arab world.

In Sudan, 600,000 Eritreans were registered in 1994, excluding citizens living in urban areas supported by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).

[22] One third of Eritreans live in exile because of government coercion, intimidation, and manipulation of patriotism to maintain financial flows from the diaspora through a rehabilitation tax and by delegating welfare responsibilities to its citizens abroad.

[23][24] About 150,000 Eritreans are located in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States as labor migrants, as the Arab countries support the ELF to fight against Ethiopia.