Iraq Refugee Problem Unresolved Despite Resettlement

Displaced families in Sulaimaneya province, Iraq (file photo)

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees says more refugees from Iraq are being resettled but the country's displacement problem remains unresolved.

Antonio Guterres was speaking in Syria, where he is to mark World Refugee Day on June 20.

He said around 52,000 Iraqis have been resettled, mostly in the United States, since 2007.

The refugee agency has recommended another 48,000 should be accepted by host countries.

The bulk of refugee applications have come from Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, and Turkey, where most of the 1.8 million Iraqi refugees abroad live.

Guterres also said that only 241,500 refugees out of a total of 15 million worldwide returned voluntarily to their homes last year, the lowest level in 20 years. Of those, 38,000 were Iraqi.

compiled from agency reports