Global displacement has reached an unprecedented level, with more than 123.2 million people forcibly uprooted from their homes, according to a report released today, June 12, by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
This staggering figure translates to one in every 67 people worldwide living in displacement due to war, persecution, or disaster.
The new total marks a sharp rise of seven million people, a 6% increase, since the end of 2023, continuing a relentless 13-year trend of annual increases in global displacement. The UNHCR’s findings reveal a world increasingly beset by crises that force people to flee their homes.
Despite this worrying development, there has been a slight decline in the number of forced displacements in early 2025. By the end of April, the number dropped marginally to 122.1 million. However, this dip offers little reassurance as conflicts in several regions remain active and volatile.
“We are living in a time of intense volatility in international relations, with modern warfare creating a fragile, harrowing landscape marked by acute human suffering,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.
“We must redouble our efforts to search for peace and find long-lasting solutions for refugees and others forced to flee their homes.”
Filippo Grandi
A large portion of the displaced population, 73.5 million, are internally displaced persons (IDPs), meaning they have been forced to leave their homes but remain within their countries. This marks a rise of 6.3 million from last year, and IDPs now account for 60% of the global total.
Displacement in Sudan And Gaza Drives Rising Numbers
Nowhere is this crisis more evident than in Gaza and Sudan. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) estimates that “about 90 percent of the population,” or over two million people in Gaza, have been displaced due to Israel’s ongoing military operations.
Meanwhile, Sudan has emerged as the world’s most severe displacement crisis. Armed conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces has pushed displacement in the country to a staggering 14.3 million by the end of 2024, 3.5 million more than the previous year.
Refugee numbers, although slightly lower this year, still paint a harrowing picture. In 2024, the global refugee count stood at 42.7 million, down by 613,600 from 2023. This includes 31 million under the UNHCR’s mandate, 5.9 million Palestinian refugees under UNRWA, and another 5.9 million in need of international protection.
The decline in the overall refugee number is largely due to revised estimates for Afghan, Syrian, and Ukrainian refugees. Still, the UNHCR reported a significant increase in Sudanese refugees, nearly 600,000, raising their total to 2.1 million.
Additionally, the number of asylum seekers has surged. As of this year, 8.4 million individuals are awaiting decisions on their claims for protection, marking a 22% rise compared to the previous year.
The history of global displacement offers sobering context. When the Refugee Convention was adopted in 1951 to address the aftermath of World War II in Europe, there were just 2.1 million refugees. By 1980, that number had surpassed 10 million. Wars in Afghanistan and Ethiopia during the 1980s doubled it to 20 million by 1990.
Throughout the next two decades, refugee levels remained relatively stable. However, the 21st century brought renewed upheaval. The U.S. invasions of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, followed by the civil wars in South Sudan and Syria, caused the number of refugees to surpass 30 million by 2021.
The war in Ukraine, which began in 2022, triggered one of the fastest-growing refugee crises in decades, with 5.7 million Ukrainians fleeing within a single year. By the close of 2023, six million remained displaced.
In the past ten years, the global number of IDPs has doubled, with a marked acceleration since 2020. The figures reflect the world’s failure to prevent and resolve conflict, and to offer safe refuge to those forced to flee.
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