Operations

2,388	Number of personnel (international and national)
43	Number of offices
1,872.5 Mio. USD	Overall funding requirements (ExCom-approved 2016 budget)

A. Operational Environment and Strategy

As the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria) progresses into its fifth year, most of the 4 million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt see no prospect of returning home in the near future. Inside Syria, the situation is deteriorating rapidly, and some 7.6 million people are internally displaced.

Similarly, the ongoing conflict in Iraq has resulted in the internal displacement of some 3.2 million people, and an exodus of over 205,000 refugees to neighbouring countries.

Syrian and Iraqi refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) in the region are becoming increasingly vulnerable and impoverished as conflict persists. In the second half of 2015, Europe saw a dramatic increase in refugee arrivals that is expected to continue into 2016. This evolving crisis has galvanized international consensus on the need for interlinked development and humanitarian efforts. In 2016, UNHCR will continue to advocate for strengthened protection space in host countries and increased resettlement.

The humanitarian situation in Yemen also deteriorated further in 2015, aggravated by ongoing instability throughout the country. Since March 2015, over 2.3 million people were displaced internally and over 122,000 people fled the country, prompting the declaration of a system-wide Level 3 emergency. At the same time, some 59,000 individuals from other countries arrived in Yemen in the first nine months of 2015 in search of safety, protection and better opportunities. The diverse and complex mixed movements from and to Yemen pose a challenge in the immediate neighbouring countries and beyond. UNHCR will continue to provide life-sustaining assistance, register new arrivals, conduct refugee status determination, and undertake detention monitoring and resettlement processing.

B. Response and Implementation

Operations in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and Yemen are presented in separate country chapters. For other countries where UNHCR operates in the subregion, please see below.

In Israel, there are approximately 45,000 individuals of concern to UNHCR. The Office will continue to work with the Government and civil society to promote measures to enhance protection, including by promoting access to legal status and rights associated with asylum, and advocating for measures to enhance protection.

The countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf are host to millions of foreign workers, many originating from refugee-producing countries. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of Yemenis who had previously crossed irregularly into Saudi Arabia have now regularized their status. Accordingly, UNHCR will pursue a multi-sectoral approach to protection, through capacity-building, advocacy for non-refoulement and durable solutions, in close coordination and partnership with relevant governments and other stakeholders.

From its Regional Office in Saudi Arabia (which covers Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates), and its offices in Abu Dhabi and Kuwait, UNHCR will continue to raise awareness about its mandate and activities in support of refugees and stateless people and to promote a culture of transparency and shared responsibility, with the aim of mobilizing resources for its operations from both the public and private sectors.