Courage of refugee Olympians lights up Tokyo Games
Competing on the global stage gives new hope and valuable experience to refugee Olympians and focuses attention on the situation and potential of the world’s forcibly displaced. By Malcolm Foster in Tokyo, Japan Talent was unleashed. Personal bests were achieved....
With origami cranes and online posts, fans cheer on Refugee Olympians
From students across Japan to refugees in camps in East Africa, the Refugee Olympic Team has experienced an outpouring of support despite the lack of crowds in Tokyo. By Malcolm Foster in Tokyo, Japan Japanese students in a city devastated by the 2011 tsunami folded...
Irish Somali woman steps up campaign against female genital mutilation
Ifrah Ahmed’s fight against FGM has taken on a new urgency during the COVID-19 pandemic. By Aoife Harte in Dublin When Ifrah Ahmed arrived in Ireland as a teenager after fleeing Somalia, it would have been natural if she had focused on building a new life for herself....
Floods bring new misery for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh camps
Thousands of people have been made homeless by flooding after monsoon rains inundated refugee sites in southern Bangladesh. By Hannah Macdonald and Ehsanul Hoque in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh Heavy monsoon rains had been falling incessantly for days when Meher Khatun,...
Asylum-seekers cultivate new lives in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The road to full integration for asylum-seekers in Bosnia and Herzegovina can be a long one, but UNHCR is providing support. By Dorijan Klasnic in Bihać, Bosnia and Herzegovina Most people associate the countryside with the beauty of nature but when Adel, an...
The refugee weightlifter giving back as mental health nurse
Having found help during tough times after arriving in the UK, Cyrille Tchatchet was inspired to study nursing alongside training to compete at the Tokyo Olympic Games. By Malcolm Foster in Tokyo, Japan From battling depression and homelessness to helping carry the...
UNHCR warns of critical protection gaps for people on the move in the Sahel and East Africa
Today, on World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, warns of life-threatening gaps in assistance to victims of trafficking and other vulnerable people in need of protection, along different routes within the Sahel and East Africa. It is...
Stand up for the Refugee Convention or millions will pay the price
To mark the 70th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention, UNHCR’s Grandi calls on states to renew their commitment to its life-saving principles. By Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees The 1951 Refugee Convention, the bedrock of international...