Refugee numbers drop for first time in a decade, but millions remain trapped: UNHCR

GENEVA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Jun, 2026) Global forced displacement has decreased for the first time in a decade, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) reported on Thursday, though the figure remains unacceptably high and tens of millions of people are still trapped in prolonged exile with little prospect of rebuilding their lives.

UNHCR's flagship Global Trends Report, launched in Geneva by High Commissioner Barham Salih, showed that global refugee numbers fell by 3% in 2025 to 41.6 million.

Some 5.4 million people fled to other countries to escape violence and persecution during the year.

Returns also gathered pace: 14.7 million displaced people went back to their areas or countries of origin in 2025 – including 4.

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4 million refugees and 10.3 million internally displaced people.

Refugee returns were the second highest since records began 60 years ago, though the agency cautioned that many occurred under pressure and to precarious conditions.

In a positive development, nearly 46,000 stateless people acquired citizenship across 24 countries last year.

The report also flagged a sharp drop in resettlement, with arrivals through resettlement or sponsorship pathways falling by more than half, year on year, to just 81,800 in 2025 – a widening gap between available places and pressing needs.