“The Lord is my refuge and God in whom I trust.”
Last year, due to the impact of the civil war in Sudan and the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip, the number of ‘internally displaced persons’ around the world was found to be the highest since related statistics began. The Internal Refugee Monitoring Centre (IDMC) announced in its annual report released on the 14th (local time) that the number of internal refugees worldwide is estimated to be 75.9 million as of the end of 2023.
The Domestic Refugee Surveillance Centre explained that this is an increase from 71.1 million at the end of 2022 and the highest number since related statistics began in 2008. The number of internal refugees worldwide has increased by 51% in the five years since 2018 (503 million). Internal refugees refer to people who have lost their homes and been driven to another part of the country due to various armed conflicts, violence, disasters, etc., such as war.
Unlike general refugees who cross borders to other countries, they do not receive protection from the international community. Last year, domestic refugees were 46.9 million. Among these, 20.5 million cases were displacements due to conflicts or violences, and 26.4 million cases were displacements due to disasters or calamities.
Approximately two-thirds of the number of forced displacements due to conflict and violence occurred in Sudan, Democratic Congo, and the Gaza Strip in Palestine. In Sudan, where civil war broke out in April last year, there were 6 million internal forced displacements. In terms of forced migration occurring in a single year, it ranks second in history after Ukraine (16.9 million cases) in 2022.
As of the end of last year, the number of internal refugees in the Gaza Strip was estimated at 1.7 million. Additionally, one-third of the forced displacement due to disasters and catastrophes last year occurred in China and Turkiye, which suffered heavy damage from floods and earthquakes.
As of the end of last year, out of a total of 75.9 million domestic refugees, 60.83 million had fled their homes due to conflicts and violence, and 7.7 million had fled their homes due to disasters and calamities.
By country, the largest number were Sudan (9.1 million people), Syria (7.2 million people), The Democratic Republic of the Congo (6.7 million people), Colombia (5.1 million people), and Yemen (4.5 million people). By region, almost half of all internal refugees lived in sub-Saharan Africa.
“Over the past two years, we have seen an alarming increase in the number of people forced to flee their homes due to conflicts and violence,” the Domestic Refugee Monitoring Centre said. “Conflict and destruction prevent millions of people from rebuilding their lives, and often continue for years,“ he added. (Source: Yonhap News Comprehensive).
Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.(Psalms 91:1-3)
God, we uplift domestic refugees who have been forced to leave their homes due to conflict, violence, and various disasters. We hear that they are not protected by the international communities as they are unable to cross the border. Rather, let the refugees find the living God with a poor heart by realizing the nature of vulnerable human beings in the face of greedy sins and natural disasters that destroy the lives of their own people at this time. May You raise the church to spread the gospel to these people and they will be comforted by You, the refugee and fortress of the needy.
Prayer 24·365
prayer@prayer24365.org
