Mereja.Forum

Who are the Eritrean afar people and where is their Homeland?

The Afar People are one of Africa’s linguistic and culturally [deleted] indigenous people who have lived for over 2,000 years in what is now known as Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti.

Most of the approximate three million Afar continue their traditional way of life as indigenous pastoralist nomadic people engaged in animal husbandry, fishing, trade and salt mining. The northern region of the Afar’s traditional homeland is known as Dankalia which lies along the strategic and resource rich coastline of the Red Sea in what is now known as Eritrea. The people in Afar state region are known as the Red Sea Afar people.

Afars homeland


Afar state is on the most sought after and prime real estate in Eritrea and the Horn of Africa. Afar state is strategically situated on international shipping routes between the strategic passages at the heart of the red sea near Bab-el-Mandeb in close proximity to Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Afar state presents key geo-strategic asset for Afars to link the continent of Africa to Middle-East and Europe for global trade and investment opportunities, scientific research and intercontinental partnerships for economic development.

The Afar homeland is over 40,000 Square Kilometers in size, stretching from the northern tip of Bori Peninsula near Massawa to southern town of Rahyta. The coastal regions of Afar state stretch up 1000 KM and contain historic villages, ports and islands. Dahlak Island, for example, contains over 300 islands which have served as the traditional fishing economic base for generations.

The land, the coastlines, the seaways and the vast deserts of Afar state holds untapped natural resources, various minerals, precious metals, potash, natural gas and a huge potential for tourism.

Assab port in Afar state is an international capacity port that has a unique capability to link international shipping line and cargo that would link Europe and the Middle East and it can potentially become the next free zone port on the coast of the red sea. Moreover, the growing demand by neighbouring Ethiopia with over 120 million populations with no access to seaport makes Assab port even more attractive for interregional trade and economic growth.

Geopolitically, Afar state is seen by international actors as a crucial region for international security and a key area of interest for a global fight against religious fundamentalism affecting regional peace and the development in the Horn of Africa.

Afars under Current Eritrean Rule


Following the independence of Eritrea in May of 1991, the indigenous population of 600,000- 800,000 Afar faced and continue to face unprecedented persecution and prolonged tyranny of the Eritrean regime. Led by President Isaias Afwerki’s ruling junta known as the People’s Front for Justice and democracy (PFDJ), the regime is systemically removing the historic presence of the Afar from their ancestral homeland, robbing them of their indigenous identity, denying them the rights to own and live off their traditional land and territories, destroying the basis of the Afar economies such as fishing and animal husbandry, and confiscating Afar businesses. Exploitation of Dankalia’s people and resources is sustaining Afwerki and his Generals’ grip on power in the region. Eritrean regime has since divided Afar homeland (Dankalia) and renamed the territory.


The current Eritrean regime is displacing Afar from their homeland in Dankalia, which they have inhabited for more than 2,000 years, and re-colonizing it with others. Eritrea is achieving this using mass murder, terror, intimidation, rape, persecution and other forms of violence. Tens of thousands of Afar families have fled their homeland into nearby Ethiopia, Yemen, Sudan and Djibouti. Those who weren’t captured or shot by Eritrean security (who have orders to shoot Afar on sight) wind up in UN refugee camps, which are bursting at the seams with men, women, children and elders. Many others who aren’t able to flee are subjected to daily humiliations, misery and sufferings.

Current Eritrean government’s policies and actions towards the Afar people are a threat to regional peace and stability. The Eritrean regime’s policies are threatening long-established Afar identity. The regime has subjected the Afar beyond human rights violations in the country. It has pushed the Afar to the brink of extinction from Dankalia. It is doing so to inherit the wealth and strategic significance of Afar Land.