U.N. Reports Syrian Refugees Tops 2 Million

Matthew 24:6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.

The United Nations’ refugee agency has reported the total number of Syrians fleeing the country’s civil war has climbed to over 2 million.

The number includes only those who have registered as refugees with U.N. related organizations so the number could be higher. The total has risen more than one million in the last six months.

The UNHCR says Syrians are now the most displaced nationality in the world.

“Syria is hemorrhaging women, children and men who cross borders often with little more than the clothes on their backs,” the UNHCR said in a statement.

The number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon has risen to over 700,000, which according to latest Lebanese population figures means there is one Syrian refugee for every six Lebanese citizens. The country is the smallest of Syria’s neighbors and the UN says it’s the least able to cope with the influx of refugees.

The UNHCR says they only have 47% of the funding needs to provide “basic humanitarian needs” to those fleeing the violence. The UNHCR says it’s likely that the total of refugees will reach three million by the end of 2013.

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