According to data from UNHCR, as of mid-2023, there are 36.5 million refugees worldwide. Countries like Iran and Turkey host the most refugees due to their proximity to conflict zones. Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine, and South Sudan have the highest number of people fleeing.

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) forecasts that as of mid-2023, 36.5 million people were living as refugees under the auspices of UNHCR or UNRWA.

The majority of the nations housing the greatest number of refugees are those that are close to those that have been involved in conflict or war, as the chart below from Statista’s Anna Fleck illustrates.

For instance, Iran recorded a rise in refugees from 798,343 in 2021 to 3,425,091 in 2022, primarily as a result of more individuals emigrating from Afghanistan. Concern Worldwide, a humanitarian organization, claims that efforts to legalize previously illegal migrants and modifications to the nation’s refugee classification system are also partially to blame for this. Similarly, of the 3.4 million refugees in Turkey, about 3.3 million are from Syria, a nearby nation.

The nations from which the greatest number of people have been compelled to escape include Syria (6.5 million), Afghanistan (6.1 million), Ukraine (5.9 million), and South Sudan (2.2 million), according to UNHCR data from mid-2023.

It’s crucial to remember that while this statistic only represents the number of persons recognized by the UN as having been forcefully displaced, the actual numbers are probably much higher.

Recently, GreatGameIndia reported that with violent confrontations on liberal campuses, the Biden administration is considering bringing refugees from Gaza to the U.S. This move could provide a haven but also risks escalating tensions similar to those of the 2020 summer of violence.