International Shia News Agency

World Displaced Hits Record 60 Million

SHAFAQNA - Almost 60 million people worldwide were displaced by conflict and persecution in 2014, marking the highest ever recorded number. According to the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees), in respect to the previous year the number increased by 8.3 million people.

Of the total, over 19 million were refugees, 1.8 million were asylum seekers and 38 million had fled their homes but stayed in their country, the report said. More than 50% of the refugees are children.

According to the experts, a contributing factor of the escalation is the now four year war in Syria, where nearly 7.5 million are displaced and 4 million have taken refuge in other countries.

“Things are getting out of control simply because the world seems to be at war”, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said, stressing that “we do not have the capacity, the resources for all victims of conflicts. We are no longer able to pick up the pieces”.

The UN official added that over the last year the number if internally displaced increased by 42,500 a day. This means that as things stand today, one on every 122 people around the world are refugees, asylum seekers or displaced.

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