Internally displaced stats highest ever

Conflicts and natural disasters led to a record number of internally displaced people in 2024, a report released by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) in Geneva yesterday says.

By the end of 2024, the number of people displaced within their own countries had risen to 83.4 million — more than double the figure six years ago.

The number of people internally displaced by conflict and violence reached an all-time high of 73.5 million, an increase of 6.5 million in 12 months.

The IDMC said the figure included people who had been living for years in countries including Afghanistan, Syria and Yemen.

More recent conflict and violence in places like Haiti, Lebanon, Myanmar and Ukraine pushed the figures higher.

Sudan had 11.6 million internally displaced people, the most ever recorded in a single country.

The IDMC said in some cases displacement was due to storms and cyclones. — dpa