More than 2.5 million people have fled Ukraine, 116,000 of whom are third-country nationals, since the Russian invasion began on February 24, the United Nations said on Friday.
116,000 third-country nationals
“The number of refugees from Ukraine – tragically – has reached 2.5 million today. We also estimate that around two million people are internally displaced in Ukraine,” said the head of the UN refugee agency Filippo Grandi in a tweet. “Millions of people are being forced from their homes by this senseless war,” he added.
Of the more than 2.5 million people who fled Ukraine, 116,000 were third-country nationals, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said separately. Poland hosts by far the largest number of refugees since the start of the Russian invasion.
Conflict could displace up to 6.7 million people inside Ukraine
Since February 24, more than 1.5 million refugees have entered the country, according to Polish border guards. For Thursday alone, they recorded 87,000 arrivals. As of March 9, the UN estimated that four million people may want to leave Ukraine to escape war in the first six months of the offensive.
The UN also estimates that the conflict could displace up to 6.7 million people inside Ukraine, 4.3 million of whom will need life-saving humanitarian assistance. Prior to the Russian offensive, Ukrainian authorities had registered 1.46 million internally displaced people, of whom 854,000 resided in government-controlled areas, according to the UN.