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. 

A Syrian Family Counts its Blessings

Syria is now in its 5th year of conflict and refugees are losing hope of going home any time soon. Hassan, Heba and their three children had an affluent life back in Syria; a car rental business a home and a good school for their children. But after Hassan was...

Shakespeare in Za’atari

Shakespeare in Za’atari

Twelve-year-old Wiam Yousef Al-Ammari has not been to school since her family fled Syria in January 2013. But that hasn’t stopped her from studying Shakespeare. She was one of 80 young refugees who recently staged “King Lear” at Za’atari camp in Jordan, exploring...

Brighter Lives for Refugees is Back!

Brighter Lives for Refugees is Back!

Together with the IKEA Foundation we are excited to launch the return of the Brighter Lives for Refugees campaign to raise millions of dollars for refugees living around the world. This marks the second year of the campaign. Last year’s campaign raised over 10 Million...

Chasing Away the Shadows

Chasing Away the Shadows

Refugee camps can be dark places. For many thousands of people living in tents and caravans far from home, the day effectively stops at sundown. Lack of light puts refugees at greater risk of injury or misfortune, limits their educational prospects and makes it harder...

Aid worker as hostage: Why 317 days must not be forgotten

Aid worker as hostage: Why 317 days must not be forgotten

It was 17 years ago that Vincent Cochetel, a UNHCR aid worker, was held hostage for 317 days in a dark Chechen basement, tortured and alone. For the first time, he tells his story of terror, but also of insight and inspiration. A TED Talk like no other, this video...

Three Baby Brothers

Three Baby Brothers

“How do you tell them apart?” I ask Jalila, the grandmother of newborn triplets in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. “I just know,” she replies confidently. The baby boy in her hand, she notes, looks different from his two brothers, who are identical. I take a closer look, but...

The Snow Storm

The Snow Storm

Aisha, a mother of four from Syria, wraps a blanket around her shoulders as the wind beats against the walls of the tent. Outside, snow is piling up and soon the family’s food will run out. “We are really scared of the storm,” she says, shivering as she hands some...

The Sound of Peace

The Sound of Peace

Every morning, Ahmad gently wakes his six-year-old son, Abdu. Then he places hearing aids over the boy’s ears and asks him what he can hear. It is a ritual they cherish, a moment when they remember just how much their lives have changed. Ahmad and Abdu are Syrian...

Try this 75-second visualization exercise

Try this 75-second visualization exercise

It’s hard to imagine what a group of 1.5 million children looks like. Or what it would be like if they all had to run from their homes, in need of food, shelter, care and protection from harm. The numbers that describe today’s refugee crisis are often hopelessly...

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