Stories
The latest stories from UNHCR.
Photo: © UNHCR/Roland Schonbauer
We take special care to bring you the latest refugee news and stories of the men, women and children we help each day.
The challenge of life in their Afghan homeland for children born in exile
KABUL, Afghanistan, November 20, 2014—The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted 25 years ago today to protect children like Hasanat and Aisha. The two have returned to a homeland, Afghanistan, that they had heard much about but never...
Home Alone: South Sudan teen leads her young siblings to safety in Uganda
BOROLI REFUGEE SETTLEMENT, Uganda, September 4, 2014—When 13-year-old Yayo Tangko turned up at the Boroli refugee settlement in Uganda earlier in 2014 with her four younger siblings, she feared the worst for her missing parents. "They are dead, because otherwise they...
What’s it like to be a child refugee?
Stories of loss, hope, joy and fear from those forced to grow up too quickly Two facts to consider: 1) In 2014, half of all refugees were children. 2) On average, a camp refugee spends 17 years living there, an entire childhood’s worth of time. As a generation, these...
Thousands continue to flee wars and cross borders in search for a new life in safety
TOVARNIK, Croatia, Sept 25 (UNHCR)—They continue to come in their thousands, Afghans, Syrians, Iraqis and others, in an ever-shifting pattern across the Serbia-Croatia border, most fleeing conflict and persecution hoping their onward journey will deliver them to a...
UN refugee agency opens two new camps for displaced Iraqis in Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Sept 25 (UNHCR)—The UN refugee agency, its partners and local authorities have opened two new camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Baghdad province, providing shelter to close to 3,500 Iraqis who have had to flee Anbar province due to recent...
UNHCR welcomes more EU support to refugees, urges fast implementation
GENEVA, Sept 24, (UNHCR)—The UN refugee agency today welcomed a decision by European Union leaders to boost resources for humanitarian assistance to countries neighbouring war-torn Syria. UNHCR, in a statement issued after the European Council decision, also welcomed...
Thousands of refugees fleeing war cross into Croatia triggering sad memories of own recent past
OPATOVAC, Croatia, Sept 22 (UNHCR) — In their thousands they streamed across a disused, now re-opened Croatian border post at Bapcek: Afghans, Syrians, Iraqis fleeing war in the Middle East into a country where the memories of its own conflict in the early-90s are...
UNHCR outlines proposals to manage refugee and migration crisis in Europe ahead of EU Summit
GENEVA, Sept 22 (UNHCR) — With EU leaders meeting in Brussels today and tomorrow, UNHCR has urged them to unite behind emergency proposals to manage what it says is an "increasingly chaotic and unpredictable" refugee and migration crisis. The UN refugee agency also...
More than one month after Cyclone Komen, some impacted people remain homeless
PONNAGYUN, Myanmar, Sept 21 (UNHCR)–More than one month on from the collapse of their home in Myanmar's western Rakhine State, Ma Nge and her 10-year-old son remain homeless. The strong winds created by Cyclone Komen had felled a nearby palm tree, causing it to fall...
Another weekend of tragedy marks the Mediterranean, with up to 40 refugees dead
LESVOS, Greece, Sept. 20 (UNHCR)—UNHCR staff on Sunday were caring for survivors of two separate weekend incidents involving boats carrying refugees and migrants between Turkey and Greece that left some 40 people dead or missing. Early Sunday, a dinghy reportedly...
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