Global Refugee Forum takes stock of international response to the biggest human displacement in history

People stand near tents at the Sahlat Al-Banat makeshift camp for internally displaced people set-up next to a waste dump on the outskirts of the northern Syrian city of Raqqa, on July 10, 2023. (AFP)
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Updated 14 December 2023
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Global Refugee Forum takes stock of international response to the biggest human displacement in history

  • With 114 million people displaced worldwide, aid agencies and developing nations demand concrete action at Geneva summit
  • Saudi Arabia has provided $18.57 billion in aid to refugees in the Kingdom, KSrelief chief Abdullah Al-Rabeeah tells forum

LONDON: Even before the war in Gaza led to the displacement of some 1.9 million people, the world was already in the throes of the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War, with conflicts, crises and climate catastrophes forcing people from their homes.

More than 114 million people are now on the move worldwide, up from 75 million in 2019, with conflicts in Ukraine, Syria and the Sahel, drought on the Horn of Africa, and economic crises from Lebanon to Venezuela sending people in search of security.

In response to these immense challenges, which have significant implications for the economies of host and transit nations, the UN has organized its latest Global Refugee Forum in Geneva — its first since the pandemic — which ran from Dec. 13 to Dec. 15.

“The Global Refugee Forum is taking place at a time when displacement around the world is at record levels,” Ezekiel Simperingham, the global lead on migration and displacement for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told Arab News.




King Abdullah II of Jordan delivers a speech during the Global Refugee Forum, in Geneva on December 13, 2023. (AFP)

“This is compounded by climate change, conflict and diseases, but the needs of refugees and other displaced people are urgent and complex.”

The forum’s opening sessions on Wednesday were dominated by the issue of Gaza, where the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which began on Oct. 7, has led to the displacement of some 85 percent of Gazans.

Opening the forum with a call for an immediate ceasefire, Filippo Grandi, the UN high commissioner for refugees, warned that continued fighting would only add to the number of globally displaced.

“A major human catastrophe is unfolding in Gaza and, so far, the (UN) Security Council has failed to stop the violence,” Grandi said in his opening remarks, referring to Washington’s recent veto of a motion calling for a ceasefire.

He warned that further displacement in a region already saturated with refugees from multiple ongoing conflicts posed a major threat to security and stability.

His comments reflected a tweet he posted earlier in the week warning that “massive displacement” beyond Gaza’s borders would not only be “catastrophic for Palestinians, who know the trauma of exile” but impossible to solve, “further jeopardizing any chance of peace.”

Since Hamas launched its unprecedented cross-border attack on the towns of southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 people, most of them civilians, and taking some 240 hostage, the Gaza Strip has come under sustained bombardment by the Israeli Defense Forces.

Although the IDF’s stated aim is to destroy Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007, Israel’s military campaign has come at the cost of some 17,000 lives, the majority of them women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Some Arab states, including Egypt and Jordan, have accused Israel of trying to drive the Palestinians out of Gaza altogether in a repeat of the Nakba, or catastrophe, of 1948, which saw the population forced from their homes to make way for the new Israeli state.




More than 114 million people are now on the move worldwide. (AFP)

If Gaza’s two-million strong population were to spill out into Egypt and other neighboring countries, it is likely they would never be permitted to return, making the possibility of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel even less likely.

Such a wave of dispossessed humanity would also place an immense burden on the shoulders of neighboring countries, which already host vast numbers of Palestinians alongside millions displaced by the war in Syria.

Speaking at the Global Refugee Forum on Wednesday, Jordan’s King Abdullah II said that the world must not turn its back on the displaced or on host nations, warning that a failure to act risked “leaving a lost generation behind.”

“Instead of making headway in resolving this ever-evolving and expanding refugee crisis, and even as new displacement crises emerge, we see attention waning. We can’t afford for this to continue,” he said, citing the 1.4 million Syrians including 650,000 refugees hosted by Jordan.

Abdullah pointed to what he called a model of “fluctuating support” from governments in Europe and the wider Western world, where refugees have at times been welcomed, as in the case of Ukrainians, and at other times refused entry.

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Also speaking at the forum on Wednesday, Colombia’s vice president, Francia Elena Marquez Mina, likewise called for greater support from Western nations. Her country, which sits at the crossroads between South and Central America, has played host to millions of Venezuelans and other nationalities escaping hardship and persecution.

Robinah Nabbanja, prime minister of Uganda, which is host to the world’s fourth largest refugee population, also said an “enormous strain has been placed on our meager economic resources” by the displacement crisis — a burden that has not been shared by wealthier nations.

Responding to these calls, Yoko Kamikawa, Japan’s foreign minister, said that it was time for the world to take “a more forward-looking approach” to the issue of displacement.

“We can’t improve the situation merely by providing food, water and shelter,” she told the forum. “I believe we all must envision a future where every refugee and displaced person can talk about their dreams and have opportunities to work hard to make their dreams come true.”

Emphasizing the urgent need for conflict resolution, Yoko said the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, could help ease some of the suffering, but stressed it could not address the underlying causes.




The UN has organized its latest Global Refugee Forum in Geneva which ran from Dec. 13 to Dec. 15. (AFP)

“UNHCR can help save people’s lives and ease some of their suffering, but it cannot resolve conflict. (That) is the responsibility of politicians such as myself, and many others here today,” she said.

Mindful of its responsibility to assist vulnerable communities, Saudi Arabia has provided more than $18.57 billion in aid to refugees in the Kingdom to date, according to Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, the supervisor general of Saudi aid agency KSrelief.  

Speaking at the forum, Al-Rabeeah said the Kingdom hosts 1.07 million refugees, who account for 5.5 percent of the nation’s population, and provides them with free health care, educational opportunities and help to integrate with their new communities.

Saudi Arabia has also provided $1.15 billion in aid to refugees in other host countries around the world, Al-Rabeeah added, revealing that the Kingdom plans to launch several new projects worth $170 million, including the provision of $40 million of aid for Palestinian refugees in Gaza, and $10 million for the Global Islamic Fund for Refugees.  

Despite these efforts, many of those working in the humanitarian sector have expressed concern over the lack of willingness among other developed countries to match their rhetoric with policy action.




Palestinians wave their identity cards as they gather to receive flour rations for their families outside a UNRWA warehouse in Rafah. (AFP)

Taking the UK as an example of this trend, Sile Reynolds, head of asylum advocacy at Freedom from Torture, noted a disconnect in the government’s championing of humanitarian support for children and its policy aim of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda.

“As the UK delegation champions its ambitious package at the forum, its colleagues back home celebrate the dubious success of passing the second reading of a bill that torches the UK’s international commitments to refugee protection,” Reynolds told Arab News.

“Why would any state take seriously the UK’s promises to share responsibility for ensuring the protection and welfare of refugees?

“The same UK government is conspiring and scheming to send children, fleeing the exact same conflict and persecution as those subject to the Global Refugee Forum’s worthy ambitions, to an uncertain future in Rwanda.”

In 2019, the Global Refugee Forum garnered more than 1,400 initiatives and pledges to support displaced people and host nations. However, to date, fewer than a third of these have been met.

Carenza Arnold, a spokesperson for the UK-based charity Women for Refugee Women, said while the forum represented “a great opportunity” to push forward initiatives to support people seeking safety around the world, it is vital these are put into action.

INNUMBERS

• 114m Refugee population worldwide in 2023.

• 43.3m Global refugee population who are children.

• 4.4m People who are deemed stateless.

• 69 percent Refugees living in countries neighboring their place of origin.

(UNHCR)

“We know that there’s an increasing number of people who are forced to flee their homes to save their lives each year,” Arnold told Arab News.

“It is crucial that initiatives are put into place to support people to move safely when they need to, to recover from the trauma they have experienced, and to rebuild their lives with dignity.”

For South Sudanese refugee Adhieu Achuil Dhieu, who addressed the forum on Wednesday, one essential component to redressing the waning interest was by offering refugees a platform to share their stories.

Recognizing the “increased participation” of displaced peoples in strategic dialogues since the 2019 forum, Dhieu said: “There is still considerable distance to go before we realize genuine refugee leadership.

“There must be tangible change led by displaced and stateless persons, to secure our rightful place in the decision-making processes that impact our lives.”

Adding that “displacement is a temporary challenge, not a permanent condition,” Dhieu said that governments had to up their funding for refugee-led organizations, reminding global leaders that the escalating refugee crisis was “a shared responsibility.”




King Abdullah II of Jordan (L) speaks with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi (R) during the Global Refugee Forum, in Geneva. (AFP)

Najwa Al-Abdallah, chief executive of Amna, formerly the Refugee Trauma Initiative, shares Dhieu’s perspective.

“Our vision of refugees determining their futures, unbounded by the impacts of conflict and displacement and our mission of nurturing joy and belonging aligns with the message of the forum,” Al-Abdallah told Arab News.

“That message has so far emphasized refugee leadership, trauma informed solutions and community as an answer to a complex problem.”

She added: “The global community cannot thrive if its most vulnerable are left behind. Let’s make this forum count.”


‘It wasn’t just about me’: Imam honored for unity efforts after UK race riots

Updated 6 sec ago
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‘It wasn’t just about me’: Imam honored for unity efforts after UK race riots

  • Three children were killed, and 10 others — eight of whom were children — were injured in an attack in Southport
  • In days following attack, crowds gathered to demonstrate outside Liverpool mosque

LONDON: A Muslim leader in the UK has been recognized for his efforts to foster unity after embracing protesters outside Liverpool’s Abdullah Quilliam Mosque in the wake of a knife attack in the northern English town of Southport in July.

Three children were killed, and 10 others — eight of whom were children — were injured in the attack.

Axel Rudakubana was detained and charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder, and possession of a bladed article.

In the days following the attack, crowds gathered to demonstrate outside the mosque in Liverpool after misinformation was spread online about the knife attack suspect.

Imam Adam Kelwick described how he approached protesters outside the mosque once tensions had eased, offering food, handshakes, and conversations.

Photographs of the peaceful exchanges, which included sharing food and even hugs, went viral, symbolizing a moment of reconciliation.

After receiving the Most Impactful Imam accolade at the British Beacon Mosque Awards, Kelwick said: “It wasn’t just about me. I’m dedicating this award to the people of Liverpool, who really came together during difficult times.”

He added: “Some of the most vocal protesters, after everyone else had gone, came inside the mosque for a little tour.”

The imam praised Liverpool’s residents for their unity.

“For those who knew better than to blame a whole religion for the evil actions of one person, for those who came to defend our mosque, and even for those who protested but later reflected and opened their hearts,” he said.

Kelwick, also a humanitarian aid worker and long-time volunteer, expressed gratitude for the award, which recognizes the contributions of mosques and leaders across the UK.


India mosque survey sparks clashes, two dead

Armed police personnel stand guard following religious violence near the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal on November 24, 2024. AFP
Updated 24 November 2024
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India mosque survey sparks clashes, two dead

  • Hindu nationalist activists were emboldened earlier this year when Modi inaugurated a grand new Hindu temple in Ayodhya, built on grounds once home to Babri mosque

LUCKNOW: Indian Muslim protesters clashed with police Sunday with at least two people killed in riots sparked by a survey investigating if a 17th-century mosque was built on a Hindu temple.
“Two persons were confirmed dead,” Pawan Kumar, a police officer in Sambhal in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, told AFP, adding that 16 police officers were “seriously injured” during the clashes.
The Press Trust of India news agency quoted officials saying three people had died.
Hindu activist groups have laid claim to several mosques they say were built over Hindu temples during the Muslim Mughal empire centuries ago.
Street battles broke out when a team of surveyors entered the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal on orders from a local court, after a petition from a Hindu priest claiming it was built on the site of a Hindu temple.
Protesters on Sunday hurled rocks at police, who fired tear gas canisters to clear the crowd.
Hindu nationalist activists were emboldened earlier this year when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a grand new Hindu temple in the northern city of Ayodhya, built on grounds once home to the centuries-old Babri mosque.
That mosque was torn down in 1992 in a campaign spearheaded by members of Modi’s party, sparking sectarian riots that killed 2,000 people nationwide, most of them Muslims.
Some Hindu campaigners see an ideological patron in Modi.
Calls for India to more closely align the country’s officially secular political system with its majority Hindu faith have rapidly grown louder since Modi was swept to office in 2014, making the country’s roughly 210-million-strong Muslim minority increasingly anxious about their future.


Man in critical condition after stabbing on London’s Westminster Bridge

Updated 24 November 2024
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Man in critical condition after stabbing on London’s Westminster Bridge

  • Authorities have said that the incident is not being treated as terrorism-related

LONDON: A man is in critical condition after being stabbed during a reported fight on Westminster Bridge in central London, the Metropolitan Police confirmed on Sunday.

Emergency services, including the London Ambulance Service and an air ambulance, were called to the scene at about 10:45 UK time and an injured man was rushed to hospital for treatment.

A London London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called today (Sunday) at 10.46 a.m. to reports of an incident on Westminster Bridge, SW1.

“We sent a number of resources including ambulance crews, an advanced paramedic, an incident response officer and London’s air ambulance.

“We treated a man at the scene before taking him to hospital,” they added.

Three individuals have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, while a fourth has been detained for affray, the BBC reported.

Two of the arrested suspects sustained minor facial injuries and were also taken to hospital, according to police.

Authorities have said that the incident is not being treated as terrorism-related.

In March 2017, Briton Khalid Masood drove a car into pedestrians who were walking on the pavement along Westminster Bridge and Bridge Street, injuring more than 50 people, four of them fatally, before killing an unarmed police officer in the grounds of the Palace of Westminster.

He was then shot by an armed police officer, and died at the scene.


Bangladesh prepares to send trained nurses to Saudi Arabia in 2025

Updated 24 November 2024
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Bangladesh prepares to send trained nurses to Saudi Arabia in 2025

  • Authorities are preparing to fulfill a Saudi request for 150 Bangladeshi nurses
  • Migration of skilled Bangladeshi workers has been on the rise this year, government data shows

DHAKA: Bangladesh is preparing to send the first batch of trained nurses to Saudi Arabia by early next year, the country’s state-owned recruiting agency told Arab News on Sunday.

Bangladeshi nationals make up the largest group of expatriates in Saudi Arabia, with nearly 3 million working and residing in the Kingdom. But only a few dozen clinicians are among the group, according to Bangladesh Medical Association data.

In 2022, the two countries signed an agreement on the recruitment of health workers, targeting the large numbers of certified doctors, nurses and medics from Bangladesh’s more than 100 medical colleges.

Bangladeshi authorities are now preparing a batch of over 100 nurses to send to Saudi Arabia, said the Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Ltd., a recruitment agency under the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment.

“We got a request to send 150 nurses to the Kingdom … If everything goes alright, we can expect the first batch to (fly out) to the Kingdom early next year,” BOESL Executive Director Shawkat Ali said.

In Saudi Arabia, nurses must undergo the Saudi Prometric Exam in order to practice in the Kingdom. Though Bangladesh has many nursing school graduates, most do not have the required Prometric certifications, he added.

“Our nurses are very skilled and industrious … We have received huge queries for the nurses. But here they need to have the Prometric certification. If we can prepare them in line with the Saudi requirements, it will open new opportunities for our nurses.”

Only around 2 percent of Bangladeshi workers in the Kingdom are skilled professionals, but the number has been on the rise since the beginning of the year, according to data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training.

Though most Bangladeshi migrant workers are seeking employment in Saudi Arabia’s giga-projects under its Vision 2030 transformation plan, there has also been a growing demand for health workers from the South Asian nation.

“For our economy, exporting trained nurses to the Kingdom is a big opportunity. We are mostly an import-dependent country, so we need huge amounts of dollars to meet the import bills,” Ali said.

“If we can export a significant number of trained medical staffers, they would be able to send back more remittances.”


Ukraine shows fragments of new Russian missile after ‘Oreshnik’ strike

Updated 24 November 2024
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Ukraine shows fragments of new Russian missile after ‘Oreshnik’ strike

  • Russia on Thursday carried out a strike on the city of Dnipro last week
  • Use of IRBM in response to Ukraine’s firing US ATACMS and UK Storm Shadow missiles

UNDISCLOSED, Ukraine: Ukraine on Sunday showed journalists fragments of the Russian missile used to strike the city of Dnipro last week, after Moscow said it had tested its new Oreshnik ballistic missile.
Russia on Thursday carried out a strike on the city which President Vladimir Putin said was a test of its new Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM).
Ukraine’s SBU security service displayed metal fragments, ranging from bulky to tiny, on fake grass in front of camouflage netting at an undisclosed location Sunday, AFP journalists saw.
The SBU did not name the missile used but said it was a type they had not seen before.
Oleg, one of its investigators, told journalists that “this is the first time the debris of such a missile has been found on the territory of Ukraine.
“This item had not been documented by security investigators before,” he added.
Oleg said that investigators are examining the fragments and will later “provide answers” on the characteristics of the missile.
He said that the missile was ballistic and had caused damage to civilian and “other infrastructure” in Dnipro.
In a televised address Thursday, Putin said Russia used the IRBM in response to Ukraine’s firing US ATACMS and UK Storm Shadow missiles into Russian territory, after the Kyiv allies lifted a ban on it using long-range weaponry to fire into Russia.
Putin said the missile flies at 10 times the speed of sound and cannot be intercepted by air defenses.
The president said it hit a defense industry production facility in Dnipro “which still produces missile equipment and other weapons.”
A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman was heard answering a phone call about a strike on Yuzhmash during a press briefing. Yuzhmash is the Russian name of an aerospace manufacturer in Dnipro now called Pivdenmash.
Neither Kyiv nor Moscow has confirmed whether this was the target.
Putin has promised more combat testing of the Oreshnik missile and said it will go into serial production.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called the strike “the latest bout of Russian madness” and appealed for updated air-defense systems to meet the new threat.
The head of Ukraine’s military intelligence has said Kyiv knew several prototypes of the missile had been produced before it was fired.