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| - The United Nations said Thursday it was resuming resettlement travel for refugees, which was suspended in March due to the coronavirus crisis, delaying departures for some 10,000 refugees. The UN agencies for refugees and for migration jointly announced "the resumption of resettlement departures" by people already living as refugees who have been approved to move to third countries. "Resettlement remains a life-saving tool for many refugees and we look forward to working with our partners in host and resettlement countries to resume movements in a safe manner," UNHCR and IOM said in a statement. The agencies announced on March 17 the temporary suspension of resettlement as dramatic restrictions around international air travel complicated departures and raised the risk of travellers becoming stranded along the way. This, they said Thursday, had "delayed the departures of some 10,000 refugees to resettlement countries". Throughout the period, the UN agencies said they and their partners had continued to resettle dozens of refugees stuck in emergency situations. And they said they had continued to process resettlement applications and counsel refugees, while numerous resettlement countries established or expanded their capacities to apply flexible processing, to ensure resettlement could continue once the departures resumed. "Although many travel restrictions still remain in place, as these begin to lift in many resettlement countries more refugee departures can be anticipated," UNHCR and IOM said. Yet they warned that the gap between the number of refugees in need of resettlement and the places made available by governments around the world was "worrisome". Nearly 80 million people globally have been forced by conflict, persecution, violence and abuses to flee their homes, including more than 26 million refugees, according to fresh UN data. That amounts to more than one percent of humanity uprooted from their home. The UN refugee agency has said there is a desperate need for resettlement spots in third countries for the world's most vulnerable refugees. It considered 1.4 million people to have resettlement needs in 2019 alone, but only around 81,000 people departed for resettlement countries last year. nl/cdw
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