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Refugees and displaced persons, the figures of a “globalized suffering” that the Pope removes from the conspiracy of silence

by Cosimo Graziani Geneva – During his recent apostolic journey to Spain, especially during the final stop in the Canary Islands, Pope Leo XIV reiterated the Catholic Church's concern regarding migration flows and forced displacement, one of the globalization-related phenomena with the greatest impact on the lives of countless people worldwide. During his time in the Spanish autonomous community most affected by this daily tragedy, Pope Leo XIV met with both migrants and reception workers: “Welcoming migrants cannot be secondary or delegated solely to a few volunteers,” declared the Bishop of Rome, in a land where the passage from the Gospel of Luke in which Christ tells Peter that he will become a “fisher of men” takes on a “literal and painful” meaning. “The Church,” he added, “has read this verse as an image of her mission.” Also today, Sunday, June 21, after reciting the Angelus prayer from the window of his study in the Apostolic Palace, Leo XIV recalled the recent celebration of World Refugee Day, promoted by the United Nations, “on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Convention relating to the status of refugees, which was adopted to protect those who are persecuted and forced to leave their homeland, homes and families.” The Pope expressed his hope “that the spirit that inspired the drafting of this important international instrument may also continue to enlighten the consciences of national leaders today. No one,” he added “can turn a blind eye to those who are seeking protection and safety. I also urge everyone to welcome those who are victims of persecution so that they may live in peace, with dignity, and look to the future with hope.” During the same days that the Pope was making his appeals during his apostolic journey to Spain, the United Nations Refugee Agency published its 2025 data on the global situation of refugees and asylum seekers. According to the statistics released, 41.6 million refugees were recorded last year, a 3% decrease compared to the previous year. These figures fell thanks to the return to their respective countries of refugees and internally displaced persons who had previously fled Afghanistan, Syria, and Sudan. This trend is slightly contrary to that of recent years, which had shown a slow but steady increase since at least 2015. Despite the overall decrease, 5.4 million people were forced to flee their countries as refugees in the last year. More than a third of the world's refugees are concentrated in just six countries: Colombia, Germany, Turkey, Uganda, Iran, and Chad. Of particular concern are the prolonged conditions of suffering and emergency in which displaced persons and refugees live: according to statistics, 26% of the total are in a country poorer than their country of origin, and around 70% have been living in precarious conditions for more than five years. Further aggravating the reception situation are the statistics on relocation: in 2025, the total number of refugees whose asylum applications were accepted decreased by more than half, from almost 189,000 people in 2024 to only 81,000 refugees received in 2025. Globally, the number of internally displaced persons within a country also decreased, although it remains alarmingly high: 67.7 million people, concentrated mainly in five countries . The UN agency also provides figures for the number of stateless people worldwide, concentrated mainly in Bangladesh, Ivory Coast, Thailand, and Myanmar: four and a half million people in total. Among the factors influencing the number of refugees globally are conflicts like the one in Sudan and crisis situations such as those in the Democratic Republic of Congo , Syria, and Afghanistan. The Sudan crisis is the most severe globally: the number of refugees from that country grew by 35% in 2025, reaching 2.4 million. The number of internally displaced persons is also very high: 9.1 million people. The situation in the DRC appears more contradictory: last year, almost four million people were internally displaced, but at the same time, 3.6 million people returned to their homes in North and South Kivu. For those who have returned, the problem has been facing a situation of complete insecurity, amidst the presence of armed groups, particularly the M23. Insecurity also affects the lives of displaced people in Syria. Although there are almost five million refugees, as many as 1.9 million Syrians have returned to their homes, but these returns are in addition to the millions of Syrians who still need humanitarian assistance. In comparison to Syria, Afghanistan has registered an even higher number of returns: 2.9 million people. These are not voluntary returns, but forced repatriations, a consequence of changes in the migration policies of the countries that previously hosted them.

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