The words refugee and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are widely used terms that are almost synonymous in meaning. Refugees are a group of people who have left their homes in another country to escape war, conflict or other tragedy. On the other hand, internally displaced persons are citizens who have fled their homes for the same reasons but remained in their country of origin. There are approximately 12 million refugees and internally displaced persons in Africa, and nearly two-thirds, or 7.7 million, are located in the Horn of Africa (Central Intelligence Agency [CIA], 2011). Despite the large number of refugees and internally displaced people in the Horn of Africa, the focus will be on Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. This paper will attempt to shed light on the plight of refugees and internally displaced persons and their potential impact on United States (US) interests. Eritrea has the lowest number of refugees and internally displaced persons with nearly 32,000 people displaced from their homes. However, this was not the case in the early 1990s, when there were almost 280,000 refugees and 75,000 internally displaced persons following the war between Eritrea and Ethiopia (CIA, 2011). Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, sparking violent fighting and border disputes in the years that followed. At one point the fighting was so intense that soldiers on both sides were involved in a fierce battle long after civilians had fled the area. The soldiers were essentially fighting through empty, desolate villages because most civilians had fled to refugee camps located in Ethiopia, Sudan or Kenya. Additionally, thousands of Eritreans illegally flee their homeland due to conscription. Conscription is the practice of citizens enlisting in compulsory national service, usually military. These soldiers are h......middle of paper......January 11). The global factbook. Retrieved from (“Somalia”) http://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/er.htmlCentral Intelligence Agency. (2011, January 11). The global factbook. Retrieved from (“Sudan”) http://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2194.html?countryName=Kenya&countryCode=ke®ionCode=af&#keThe Horn of War in Africa: mass expulsions and the question of nationality. (2003). Eritrea and Ethiopia, 15(3a), 1-66. Retrieved from http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2003/01/29/horn-africa-warMaxted, J., & Zegeye, A. (2002). Human stability and conflicts in the Horn of Africa. African Security Review, 11(1), 51-59. The path to ruin. (2006, August 6). The economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/node/7270000Timeline: Ethiopia and Somalia. (May 20, 2009). BBC News. news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6159735.stm