More than 100 million people are currently fleeing the bomb threat at Pristina airport, the capital of Kosovo

According to the UN, the number of people fleeing war, conflict and persecution around the world is at an all-time high.

According to the UNHCR, the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide currently stands at about 103 million. The number includes refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons and other vulnerable persons. Compared to the level at the end of 2021, this means that there are now 13.6 million more people on the run than a year ago – an increase of 15 percent.

An unimaginable number that no one would have thought possible ten years ago, the UN refugee organization announced in Bonn on Wednesday. The main reason for the rapid increase this year is the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A spokesman said the early months of the war were the “fastest growing displacement crisis since World War II”. This, along with worsening emergencies in African countries, in Afghanistan and other regions, has resulted in the number of refugees rising above 100 million.

According to the UN Refugee Agency, the national partner of the refugee agency UNHCR, nearly a third of the Ukrainian population has so far been deported. That is almost eight million Ukrainians living as refugees in European countries and more than 6.5 million internally displaced.

Particularly in Ukraine’s neighboring countries, the willingness to help is still high. However, the discussions about the reception of refugees, about responsibilities and lack of capacity are becoming increasingly fierce and sharp. “But just as winter approaches and more Ukrainians are expected to flee their country as infrastructure there is systematically bombed, support is still urgently needed,” the UN refugee agency warned. (sda/dpa)