Global displacement fueled by conflict and persecution decreased in 2025 for the first time in ten years, according to a report released by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Thursday.
However, the UN refugee agency emphasized that the number of people enduring prolonged displacement remains dangerously high.
UNHCR data shows that while 5.4 million individuals were newly forced from their homes last year, the total global refugee population stood at 41.6 million, a figure that includes 6 million Palestinian refugees.
At the same time, a massive 14.7 million people returned to their native countries—marking a 50% surge from the prior year and the second-highest return rate recorded since 1965.
Most of these returnees went back to six nations: Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine, and Myanmar. Despite the homecoming, the UNHCR warned that these returns are fragile, noting that many are heading back to areas devastated by broken infrastructure, scarce essential services, and ongoing security threats.
Significant regional shifts drove the downward trend. In Afghanistan, the refugee count plummeted from 5.8 million in 2024 to 3.7 million in 2025. This was largely due to 2.9 million people returning home, a wave triggered by strict policies in Pakistan and Iran that left displaced Afghans with few options.
Similarly, Syria’s refugee population fell from 6 million to 4.9 million after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government in December 2024 prompted the return of 1.3 million people.
“However, many returnees face serious challenges, including insecurity, widespread destruction, weak economic conditions, limited services and jobs, and continued sporadic violence in parts of the country,” the UNHCR stated.
Looking ahead into 2026, the agency warned that new conflicts in the Middle East are already shifting global displacement trends. Since March 2026, fighting and evacuation orders have displaced nearly one million people in Lebanon.
Additionally, an estimated 3.2 million people were temporarily displaced in Iran following joint U.S.-Israeli military operations in late February.