UN High Commissioner for Refugees news stories on Newser

Syria Launches Ground Assault to 'Clean' Baba Amr

Kevin Spak — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 09:48:24 CST

Syrian ground troops advanced on Homs today, indicating that the regime was about to launch a ground assault to take the restive city. One Syrian official told the AP that the rebel-held Baba Amr neighborhood would be "cleaned" in a matter of hours. Three western journalists are still trapped in...

In Homs, Opposition Reports 'Indiscriminate Slaughter'

Kevin Spak — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 08:58:46 CST

Syria’s uprising got even bloodier today as government forces continued their assault on Homs, clashing with military defectors and other opposition gunmen. Opposition activists declared the city a “humanitarian disaster area,” estimating that in the past week more than 100 have been killed. “Indiscriminate slaughter is being committed by the...

Qatar Deports Alleged Rape Victim Back to Libya

Kevin Spak — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 11:00:05 CDT

Qatar has sent Iman al-Obeidy back to Libya kicking and screaming, despite objections from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Obeidy tells CNN that Qatari guards took her and her parents from their hotel in Doha; took their cell phones, laptops, and money; beat her and handcuffed her; and then...

Humanitarian Crisis Unfolds on Libya's Borders

Mark Russell — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 08:45:05 CST

The violence and unrest gripping Libya is creating a humanitarian crisis, as almost 100,000 people have fled the fighting for Egypt and Tunisia, reports the New York Times . About half of the refugees are Egyptians, but those fleeing includes Libyans, Chinese, and others, mostly poorer laborers. "We call upon...

Don't Forget Iraqi Refugees: Brangelina

M. Morris — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 17:04:40 CDT

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are in Syria, using their powers for good. The celebrity übercouple visited Iraqi refugees in Damascus today in an attempt to keep the lowest-profile victims of the war from falling off the radar, People reports. Jolie, a goodwill ambassador for the UN's refugee agency, released...

Wolfowitz: We Must Help North Korea's Refugees

Kevin Spak — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 08:09:00 CDT

When President Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak meet today, they will discuss a host of security and economic issues, but Paul Wolfowitz hopes they take some time out for a purely humanitarian concern: North Korea’s refugees. Hundreds of thousands of North Koreans have fled to China, but “China...

UN Official Kidnapped in Pakistan

Ambreen Ali — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 05:04:57 CST

An American working with a UN refugee agency in southwestern Pakistan was kidnapped today by gunmen who killed his driver, reports the Times of London. The attack occurred as the official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which aids Afghan refugees in the city of Quetta, headed to...

Jolie Returns, Moved, From Afghanistan Trip

Katherine Thompson — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 17:00:00 CDT

Angelina Jolie made a trip to Afghanistan last week in her role as goodwill ambassador for the United Nations, spending two days among the country's returning refugees. The actress visited sites where thousands of Afghans live in makeshift housing and struggle to find work, problems that typify the stress the...

Google Tracking Refugees

Nick McMaster — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 17:45:05 CDT

A new feature allows Google Earth users to take a tour of the world’s refugee hotspots, with images of camps supplemented by information from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the AP reports. The search titan has greatly improved the available resolution in its satellite photos of refugee areas—for...