Women who fled the war-torn Sudan following the outbreak of fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces queue to receive food rations at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees transit centre in Ren.The United Nations Human Rights Council says the number of refugees has increased drastically over the past year. This is as the UN Refugee Agency is celebrating World Refugee Day in Johannesburg today.
The annual commemoration seeks to honour and celebrate the courage of individuals across the globe who had to flee their homes and places of birth due to conflict and persecution. The UN estimates that the number of people who have been forcibly displaced has risen to over 117 million globally at the end of 2023.
“On this important day we know that more than 120 million people have been forced to flee their homes into neighbouring countries. In the last year we know that new conflicts have fled up and old ones remain unresolved,” says UN Human Rights Council representative, Monique Okoko.We need a world where refugees find solidarity.