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Syria + 14 more

Update of UNHCR’s operations in the Middle East and North Africa, 20 September 2018

Attachments

Executive Committee of the High Commissioner’s Programme
Sixty-ninth session
1-5 October 2018

A. Situational context including new developments

Syria situation

As the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic entered its eighth year, over 6.6 million Syrians remained internally displaced. As of August 2018, over 5.6 million Syrian refugees have registered in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Despite this generosity, host countries, which contend with mounting demographic, economic, political, security and social pressures, have increasingly resorted to stricter border management measures. This has had a significant impact on the ability of thousands of vulnerable people to seek safety.

In the first six months of 2018, some 16,000 Syrian refugees spontaneously returned to the Syrian Arab Republic, while a total of 750,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) returned to their places of origin, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). In 2017, nearly 51,000 Syrian refugees repatriated and slightly more IDPs (764,000) returned to their areas of origin.

As the lead agency for the global shelter and non-food items and protection clusters, UNHCR expanded its operations in the Syrian Arab Republic, reaching nearly 900,000 persons of concern through its protection activities from January through June 2018. During the same period, UNHCR distributed core relief items to over 850,000 individuals and provided shelter to 44,500 people. UNHCR also led an emergency response to meet the needs of large numbers of IDPs, including in eastern Ghouta, Afrin and the south-western region of the Syrian Arab Republic.

UNHCR continued to lead, together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP) in response to the Syria crisis, coordinating the work of over 270 partners in the five main countries hosting Syrian refugees.

Iraq situation

The number of IDPs in Iraq has gradually declined since 2014, with some 1.9 million individuals currently displaced. The number of IDP returnees has increased to 3.9 million, according to the Displacement Tracking Matrix of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Despite this trend, many IDPs continued to find themselves in a protracted displacement situation or in secondary or tertiary displacement situations, as was the case for example of people who have made unsuccessful attempts to return to areas of origin and went back to camps. Poor living conditions in areas of return, ongoing insecurity, the lack of shelter, services and livelihood opportunities, and explosive hazards continued to result in displacement.

Instances of displacement have also been recorded due to threats linked to perceived affiliation to insurgent groups and intercommunal tensions, following the referendum in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in September 2017. Evictions, denied return and forced recruitment into armed groups in areas of return limited the possibilities of IDPs to live outside the relative protection of the camps. UNHCR continued to advocate and assist authorities with access to civil documentation for IDPs. Ensuring the protection of the displaced and other affected populations, including through safe and sustainable returns, also continued to be a critical component of the broader recovery and stabilization efforts in Iraq.

UNHCR is co-leading, with United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UNHabitat), the working group on sustainable solutions for IDPs in the context of the recovery and resilience programme for Iraq. Over 269,000 Iraqi refugees are registered with UNHCR in neighbouring countries, with an additional 12,500 individuals living in camps without any form of registration in the AlHassakeh Governorate in the Syrian Arab Republic.

North Africa

In Libya, UNHCR reinforced its presence with the return of international staff to Tripoli following the lifting of the evacuation status in early 2018. UNHCR responded to the deteriorating humanitarian conditions due to the sharp increase in the use of detention and provided assistance to IDPs and returning IDPs.

Despite the volatile security situation, 372,000 IDPs have returned to their homes in Libya, and UNHCR is advocating safe, dignified and voluntary return for the remaining 192,000 IDPs.

With the number of disembarkations in Libya increasing, detention centres have become overcrowded, and conditions inside these centres worsened. Since November 2017, UNHCR evacuated some 1,860 refugees out of detention centres in Libya (1,536 to the newly established Emergency Transit Mechanism in Niger, 310 to Italy and 10 to Romania). To provide alternatives to detention and accelerate durable solutions to third countries, UNHCR also established a “gathering and departure facility” in Tripoli.

In the course of the last three months, more than 1,500 refugees and migrants were stranded for several days on rescue boats in the Mediterranean Sea. This has led to ongoing discussions in coastal States about the disembarkation and relocation of refugees and migrants.

In Algeria, UNHCR continued to provide protection and basic assistance and services to Sahrawi refugees in the five camps near Tindouf, amid serious funding shortfalls. Morocco continued to be a country of destination for migrants and refugees and is taking steps to extend social services to refugees. UNHCR is also working with the Moroccan authorities to develop and implement a national asylum system. In Tunisia, UNHCR continued to advocate the establishment of a national asylum system and supported the authorities in expanding access to public services and livelihood opportunities for refugees.

As of 31 July 2018, UNHCR has registered some 233,000 refugees and asylumseekers of 58 nationalities in Egypt. Over half were from the Syrian Arab Republic. Refugees and asylum-seekers in Egypt remained vulnerable, and UNHCR is providing support to the most vulnerable through unconditional multipurpose cash assistance. In Mauritania, UNHCR established a Field Unit in Nouadhibou in April 2018 to monitor and conduct a profiling exercise to identify the vulnerabilities of individuals in mixed movements. In addition, 57,000 Malian refugees in Mbera camp were assisted, and a profiling exercise of households in the camp and a market study were carried out.

Yemen

The humanitarian crisis in Yemen deteriorated in 2018, leaving more than 22.2 million people in need of assistance. This represents an increase of some 1.5 million people compared to the previous year. The deepening decline of Yemen’s economic, social, political and security situation has had the greatest impact on civilians, with the threat of famine and further outbreaks of cholera and diphtheria looming.

The pace of airstrikes and armed clashes escalated, leading to scores of civilian casualties and triggering the displacement of over 2 million people since the beginning of the conflict in 2015. Displacement also increased since the Hudaydah offensive began in June 2018, with some 50,800 families fleeing from their homes.

With more people than ever resorting to negative coping mechanisms, UNHCR and partners have witnessed a surge in protection needs. UNHCR expanded its protection monitoring and outreach throughout Yemen to ensure targeted assistance for vulnerable IDPs. Despite limited humanitarian access, UNHCR assisted a total of 521,000 IDPs throughout the country, 84,000 of whom were displaced by the offensive on Hudaydah. Core relief items, emergency shelter kits, protection services and cash-based interventions were provided.

Yemen hosted over 279,000 refugees and asylum-seekers, mainly from Somalia. The asylum space in the country was compromised by increasing levels of arbitrary arrests, the use of detention and restrictions on freedom of movement. In 2018, UNHCR assisted the most vulnerable, also offering legal services, registration and refugee status determination, cash assistance, and access to education and health, and monitored detention facilities. With conditions further deteriorating, UNHCR, in collaboration with the Somali and Yemeni authorities and IOM, continued the assisted spontaneous return programme to support Somali refugees wishing to return to Somalia.

Mixed and onward movements

In 2018, refugees and migrants continued to face high levels of risk when travelling from the Middle East or Africa towards Europe. UNHCR worked with governments and other partners to provide access to safety and protect persons of concern from refoulement. Solutions in the context of migration management frameworks were also sought.

More than 1,640 people reportedly died or went missing in the Mediterranean in the course of 2018. An unknown number of individuals died along routes at crossing points in North Africa, including in the Sahara Desert. The tightening of border controls in the region also increased the risk of human rights violations.

The Central Mediterranean situation has rapidly changed due to the role that Libyan authorities are playing at sea. They have intercepted or rescued some 13,500 refugees and migrants as of mid-September this year. This represents an increase of more than 40 per cent compared to the same period the previous year. Despite the lower number of persons undertaking dangerous sea journeys from Libya, more appeared to be dying at sea. This was attributed to the restricted activity of vessels associated with nongovernmental organizations and the limited capacity to detect and rescue boats in distress.

Refugees and migrants crossing through Libya also faced protection risks, particularly when arrested and detained by the Libyan authorities or exposed to criminal networks. UNHCR evacuated refugees from detention centres in Libya with a view to providing durable solutions for vulnerable persons of concern. The Office is now promoting alternatives to detention and advocating the release of refugees and asylum-seekers.

The Western Mediterranean route saw significant changes this year. Between January and July 2018, nearly 24,000 individuals crossed from Algeria and Morocco to Spain. This represents a significant increase when compared to the same period the previous year (8,700 individuals).

Despite the ongoing conflict in Yemen, there were some 100,000 new arrivals in the country from the Horn of Africa in 2017, an estimated 10 percent of whom sought international protection. These individuals continued to risk their lives during dangerous sea journeys and often faced arrest, detention and deportation after arrival.