The Syrian Refugee Crisis

Via the BBC:  UN refugee agency says more than 2m have fled Syria

More than two million Syrians are now registered as refugees, after the total went up by a million in the last six months, the UN’s refugee agency says.

More Syrians are now displaced than any other nationality, the says UNHCR.

[…]

The UNHCR said in a statement on Tuesday: "Syria is haemorrhaging women, children and men who cross borders often with little more than the clothes on their backs."

[…]

Pointing out that more than 97% of Syria’s refugees are being hosted by countries in the surrounding region, the UNHCR said the influx was "placing an overwhelming burden on their infrastructures, economies and societies".

According to the piece, the numbers are as follows:

  • 716,000 in Lebanon
  • 515,000 in Jordan
  • 460,000 in Turkey
  • 169,000 in Iraq
  • 111,000 in Egypt

There are also 4.25 million internally displaced within Syria itself.

Syria’s population is roughly 21 million, which means that almost 10% of the population has fled the country and that overall about 30% of the population has been displaced by the civil war.

See, also: Zaatari refugee camp: Rebuilding lives in the desert.

FILED UNDER: Middle East, World Politics, , , , , , ,
Steven L. Taylor
About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor of Political Science and a College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog). Follow Steven on Twitter

Comments

  1. stonetools says:

    Note that more Syrian chemical attacks will certainly increase the refugee outflow and worsen the pressure on host nations. But hey, Syrian chemical attacks cannot possibly affect the situation outside Syria, right?

  2. Just Me says:

    If I was living in Syria and in a position to flee I would probably do so. Between chemical attacks, rebels and the possible bombs from Western nations it might be difficult to live safe and secure. Civil war is often hardest on the citizens.

    From my safe seat in the US it is also hard to tell if there is a side to root for. Assad is definitely bad but I am not convinced the rebels would necessarily be better.

  3. Mark Steve says:

    The Syrian crisis has got worse after Russia and China banded together….http://infoisfun.wordpress.com/2013/08/28/russia-and-china-warn-against-military-intervention-in-syria/