States have pledged more than $3 billion to support refugees and about 50,000 resettlement places, the United Nations refugee agency said on Wednesday at the end of the inaugural Refugee Forum in Geneva. Yet asylum rights remain "under threat," UNHCR's Grandi said.
The number of migrants and refugees stuck on the Greek islands has peaked at above 40,000. The Greek government hopes that the introduction of new laws next year will help bring the numbers down — by deporting many asylum seekers back to Turkey.
From Turkey to the Horn of Africa, refugees are in dire need of permanent resettlement. The UNHCR said there "simply has to be more equitable sharing of responsibility for global crises."
The High Commissioner of the UN refugee agency UNHCR talks to InfoMigrants about tackling the root causes of migration and refugee flows, the current rhetoric around people on the move, and Europe's political response.
After more than three decades of refugee and humanitarian work around the world, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi seems more determined than ever to help forcibly displaced people. On World Refugee Day, InfoMigrants spoke to the UNHCR chief about the most emotional moments of his career, how to tackle the root causes of migration and what UNHCR is doing to help vulnerable refugees.
Nearly four weeks since fighting began near the Libyan capital Tripoli, UNHCR, Italian and Libyan authorities have evacuated 146 refugees to Italy. The refugees were trapped in detention centers near the frontline.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi has accused Italy of resorting to using "very aggressive" language in politics, which he believes could lead to "racist behaviors" in society. He also called for greater solidarity among EU states in sharing the number of arriving migrants.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a recent report that the gap is growing between the number of refugees who need resettlement and the places made available by countries worldwide. The agency is calling for stronger efforts by governments to continue the UN resettlement program.
German chancellor Angela Merkel says that letting in legal migrants from a UN program helps head off illegal migration. Her remarks were made before a meeting with UN High Commissioner on Refugees Filippo Grandi.
A new report published by UNHCR highlights a relevant gap in the education of refugee girls. According to the findings, girls are half as likely as boys to attend high school.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, described conditions in Libyan migrant detention centres as "terrible". He urged to establish reception centres instead.
The UNHCR is expanding its humanitarian programs in Libya. A new predeparture camp is being built for migrants on the Greek island of Chios and migrants have brought in almost 4 billion Euros in the past six years for traffickers. All this and more in today's news roundup.