UNHCR calls on Libya to urgently develop plan for asylum seekers and refugees, welcomes authorization to restart evacuations
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, today urged the Libyan government to immediately address the dire situation of asylum-seekers and refugees in a humane and rights-based manner. Raids and arbitrary arrests by the authorities this month targeted areas largely populated by...
UNHCR urges States to end stalemate at Belarus-EU border and avoid further loss of life
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is appealing for urgent action to save lives and prevent further suffering at the border areas between Belarus and the European Union (Latvia, Lithuania, Poland) after the latest tragic death of an asylum-seeker was reported this week....
Afghan teen makes her mark on Ecuadorian city that gave her refuge
Zohra was just 11 when she and her family fled to Ecuador. Now 16, she paints murals on buildings in her host city as a way of reconciling her two worlds. By Diana Díaz and Jaime Giménez in Quito, Ecuador The two things about her native Afghanistan that Zohra...
South Sudan floods wreak havoc on vulnerable communities
This is a summary of what was said by Arafat Jamal UNHCR Representative in South Sudan and ad interim UN Resident and UN Humanitarian Coordinator – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today’s press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. As the worst...
UNHCR’s Grandi urges increase in the scope of humanitarian assistance in Syria, including to people returning from displacement
DAMASCUS, Syria – UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi reaffirmed UNHCR’s support to the most vulnerable in Syria and urged an increase in the scope of humanitarian assistance in the country, including to people who have chosen to return home following...
UN Agencies regret the death of persons on the move in Latin America, and stand ready to accompany a coordinated regional response
UN Agencies deeply regret the shipwreck in Acandí, Colombia, on October 11 of a vessel carrying around 30 people headed to Panama. Colombian authorities reported that three people lost their lives in the tragedy and another six, including three children, are missing....
Hungry and shivering, Kabul displaced brace for bleak winter
In Kabul, nearly 50,000 Afghans displaced from other parts of the country by recent fighting are desperate to receive aid before winter sets in. By Tony Aseh in Kabul, Afghanistan At a facility operated by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, about 15 kilometres outside...
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi urges support for crisis-hit Lebanon
BEIRUT, Lebanon – At the end of a two day visit to Lebanon, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, urged the international community to scale-up its support to the Lebanese people and the refugees they host. “I am visiting Lebanon during a very difficult...