Geneva [Switzerland], November 9: The war in Sudan has led to the world's worst civilian protection crisis in decades, with more than 3 million people forced to flee in search of safety in neighbouring countries, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.
Dominique Hyde, UNHCR's Director for External Relations, said at a press conference today in Geneva that the ongoing displacement from Sudan has reached levels not seen since the beginning of the crisis, with 60,000 Sudanese arriving in Chad last October due to fighting in Darfur.
Civilians are paying the highest price, with 71% of refugees who arrived in Chad reporting that they survived human rights violations in Sudan while fleeing. Families are traumatised after fleeing the horrors and continue to live in fear despite being in relative safety.
"Countries in the region are facing enormous needs and are feeling the pressure as national facilities have collapsed due to the continued influx of arrivals," Hyde said, noting that Chad has become home to more than 700,000 Sudanese refugees, mostly women and children, who have been forced to leave their homes since the outbreak of the war, the largest influx of refugees in Chad's history.
The UNHCR official noted that Egypt, the largest host country for Sudanese refugees, is hosting 1.2 million new refugees according to the latest government figures.
Source: Emirates News Agency