Saudi border guards have fired on Ethiopian migrants trying to cross through Yemen into the Gulf kingdom, killing hundreds since last year, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said.

The allegations signify an escalation of abuses along the eastern route from the Horn of Africa to Saudi Arabia, where hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians live and work.

"Saudi officials are killing hundreds of migrants and asylum seekers in this remote border area out of view of the rest of the world," HRW researcher Nadia Hardman said.

"Spending billions buying up professional golf, football clubs, and major entertainment events to improve the Saudi image should not deflect attention from these horrendous crimes."

The New York-based group has documented abuses against Ethiopian migrants in Saudi Arabia and Yemen for nearly a decade, but the latest killings appear to be "widespread and systematic" and may amount to crimes against humanity, it said.

Last year, UN experts reported "concerning allegations" that "cross-border artillery shelling and small arms fire by Saudi Arabia security forces killed approximately 430 migrants" in southern Saudi Arabia and northern Yemen during the first four months of 2022.

Saudi officials did not respond to a request for comment.

HRW interviewed 38 Ethiopian migrants who tried to cross into Saudi Arabia from Yemen,  and also have satellite imagery and videos and photos posted to social media "or gathered from other sources".

Explosive weapons

They gave details of 28 "explosive weapons incidents" including attacks by mortar projectiles, the report said. 

One 20-year-old woman from Ethiopia's Oromia region said Saudi border guards fired on a group of migrants they had just released from custody.

"They fired on us like rain. When I remember, I cry," she said.

HRW called on Riyadh to "immediately and urgently revoke" any policy of using lethal force on migrants and asylum seekers and urged the UN to investigate the alleged killings.