Climate change and displacement
How the growing global crisis is forcing millions from their homes By Hannah Scott Twenty years ago, Kutubdia in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district was a fertile land where farmers could grow paddy. Now, because of the effects of climate change, the only crop that can...
Cash assistance offers lifeline for Syrian refugee family in Jordan
Mohammad’s family was forced to flee their hometown of Aleppo in Syria when it came under heavy, life-threatening siege in 2012 — but not before a grave injury changed his life forever. Ongoing violence and airstrikes destroyed his neighbourhood — and left Mohammad...
Nine years in crisis
The ongoing humanitarian emergency in Syria As the crisis in Syria enters its ninth year, the need for life-saving essentials in the conflict-ravaged country remains immense — and urgent. An estimated 13.5 million need humanitarian assistance — including 6.6 million...
A Canadian staffer reflects on her time helping displaced Syrians in Iraq
“Every refugee story strikes me on a personal level” By Karen Whiting, as told to Hannah Scott Originally from Ottawa, Karen Whiting is an Assistant Representative for Protection based in Baghdad, Iraq. She is responsible for establishing UNHCR’s protection...
Faces of Syria
Nine years since the start of the conflict in Syria the number of people who have been forcibly displaced continues to increase. 13.5 million are in need of humanitarian assistance. Behind this number are the stories of individual people whose lives have been...
UNHCR seeks US$255 million to respond to COVID-19 outbreak
Funding is part of wider UN appeal for US$2 billion to safeguard ‘millions of people who are least able to protect themselves from the new coronavirus.’ By UNHCR staff in Geneva As the coronavirus pandemic accelerates, claiming thousands of lives each day, those at...
UNHCR’s airlift with vital medical aid lands in Iran
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, airlifted today (23 March) some 4.4 tonnes of much-needed medical aid items, including supplies to support the COVID-19 response in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Airbus A330-200 arrived at Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran from...
Sheikh Thani Bin Abdullah makes the largest individual contribution ever in support of UNHCR
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani Humanitarian Fund announced today in Doha Sheikh Thani’s largest contribution so far to UNHCR. More than US$43 million, channelled through four separate agreements, will fund UNHCR’s work in...