At the close of this year’s 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence, Francisca Vigaud-Walsh writes that women’s bodies are often a battleground in conflict zones, and humanitarian aid areas must be a place for healing their wounds. Programs such as the U.S. initiative “Safe From the Start” are essential tools in the addressing the impacts of violence against woman and girls in conflicts.
The Global Compact on Refugees: What Can We Expect?
Responding to the current global refugee crisis, the UN General Assembly in September 2016 convened a special meeting to examine the effectiveness of the international community’s response to mass movements of people. That meeting lead to two important outcomes, with the third – the Global Compact on Migration – still pending. Jeff Crisp argues that the formulation of a Global Compact represents an invaluable opportunity to reassess, revise and reinvigorate the international community’s efforts to protect and find solutions for the world’s refugees.
Update from the Mediterranean
Izza Leghtas, RI Senior Advocate for Europe, is currently on the Italian island of Lampedusa, where more than 500 asylum-seekers and migrants have arrived in recent days from Libya. Learn more in our latest video dispatch.
Support Local Syrian Aid Groups. They Are Saving Lives.
The sixth anniversary of the Syria conflict is upon us. In those six years, five million Syrians have become refugees in neighboring countries. Inside Syria, six and a half million people are displaced from home, and 13.5 million need humanitarian aid to survive even as humanitarian needs continue to grow. The situation for 2017 does not…
Urgent Action Needed to Save Lives in Nigeria and Lake Chad
On Friday, the governments of Germany, Nigeria, and Norway, along with the United Nations, are hosting the Oslo Humanitarian Conference on Nigeria and the Lake Chad region. The objective is to focus political attention on Africa’s biggest humanitarian crisis, as well as to generate financial contributions to respond to urgent humanitarian needs.
Many Refugees in Turkey Struggle to Keep Warm
For many refugees in Turkey, the struggle to keep warm is a daily battle. Some refugees said they received a small amount of coal from the government, but that it is not enough. Others said they received no assistance of any kind at all.
UN Moves Forward on Task Force to Protect So-Called “Climate Refugees”
Nations will soon meet in Marrakesh to discuss progress on the landmark UN Climate Change Agreement reached in Paris last year. On the agenda will be the increasing impacts of climate change on displacement and migration, including a decision to establish a “Climate Displacement Task Force.”
Waiting for Mosul to Start, Mosul Already Started
While anticipation of the Mosul offensive continues to build – along with concern about the consequent displacement that could overwhelm nearby areas – the reality is that Mosul’s military offensive and displacement crisis started some time ago. In the past several months, more than 100,000 people have fled the areas around Qayyara and Shirqat, two towns…
For Somali Refugees, A False Choice
Kisimayo, the capital of the southern-most province of Somalia, was recovered from the Al-Shabaab terrorist organization in 2012 by Kenyan and Somali troops. With the change of control, the local government is now actively trying to set up a functioning administration. Yet a mere 10 to 15 km from the city, areas are still under…
As Suu Kyi Visits the United States, Refugees International visits the Rohingya
As President Obama welcomes Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of Myanmar, to the United States this week and celebrates her country’s democratic reforms, Refugees International will be traveling to Southeast Asia to meet with a population that is not welcome in her country: the Rohingya.