NEW YORK, 25th September, 2026 (WAM) -- More than 117 million people have been forced from their homes, and displacement is outpacing solutions, Barham Salih, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, told the Security Council.
Humanitarian agencies can protect people and help host countries, he said, but “humanitarians cannot create peace”. He urged the Council to use its influence to end conflicts and sustain peace processes.
Marking the Refugee Convention’s seventy-fifth anniversary, he called on States to preserve asylum and the principle that people must not be returned to danger. His 50by35 initiative aims to halve, by 2035, the number of refugees in long-term displacement who depend on humanitarian aid.
Returns alone are insufficient, he said: people need safety, livelihoods and functioning services to rebuild their lives. “Ultimately, the most durable solution to forced displacement is peace.”
According to UN, 41.6 million people worldwide are refugees and 68.7 million people are displaced within their own country due to conflict or violence. Most refugees – 68%– are hosted by low and middle-income countries.
Funding cuts are sharply reducing the number of people the UN agencies can help.