How many iraqis have been displaced

Of the total number of internally displaced, 71 percent have taken refuge in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. There are also , refugees in Iraq from neighboring countries — the vast majority escaping violence and persecution in Syria. As the humanitarian crisis enters its fifth year, millions of families living in protracted displacement situations are reaching breaking point.

They have exhausted their financial resources over the years and continue to face constrained access to basic services and critical protection risks. They are in desperate need of life-saving aid. Despite significant security risks and challenges accessing people in need, UNHCR is working around the clock to deliver lifesaving aid to Iraqis.

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As of , 9. The refugee crisis has impacted both Iraqis who fled and the communities that they left behind. Engineers, artists, lawyers, academics, doctors, and other professionals were among the first to escape the war.

This migration dismantled many of Iraq's cultural institutions and stripped it of the services that middle class professionals provide. While IDPs face difficult and uncertain living conditions inside Iraq, Iraqi refugees seeking safety in neighboring countries have faced their own vulnerabilities. With the exception of Palestinian Iraqis, the Iraqis who fled to neighboring countries have not lived in camps, but are dispersed within communities.

This has made it difficult to accurately estimate their numbers, assess their needs, and deliver assistance. The Syrian government estimated that a million Iraqis had crossed into its territory and Jordan reported that it was hosting half a million Iraqis. Host governments have been generous in allowing the Iraqis to enter their countries but those policies have been ambiguous and the Iraqis have never had formal refugee status.

None of the governments hosting large numbers of Iraqis is a signatory to the U. Convention on Refugees. Some of the Iraqis are legal residents. In some countries, they are registered but not allowed to work. Many Iraqis have gone back and forth to Iraq in circular migration patterns — for example, to check on property or collect pensions. The latest figures, based on government estimates, are that there are 1,, refugees of Iraqi origin in Jordan and Syria of whom only , receive assistance from the UNHCR.

Since the numbers peaked in , some Iraqis have returned to Iraq. And some Iraqis have been resettled outside the region: more than 85, Iraqi refugees over the past decade — 72 percent of whom have gone to the United States. Surprisingly, more than 3, Iraqis were resettled out of Syria last year — a testament to the courageous UNHCR staff in Damascus and to the desperation of Iraqis wanting to escape the conflict in Syria.

Refugee resettlement has worked, but it has been a lengthy and bureaucratic process; in some cases the enhanced security procedures have led to delays stretching for years. Today Iraqi refugees throughout the region face dwindling donor support, particularly as the needs of Syrian refugees increase.