It has been six years since the outbreak of civil war in Syria that has resulted in a reported 470,000 Syrian deaths. The war began with anti-government demonstrations and escalated into armed opposition groups fighting the government after a violent crackdown on the protests. The ongoing threat of the civil war has caused 11 million Syrians to flee so far. Here are 10 facts about Syrian refugees:

1. Of the 11 million people displaced by the conflict in Syria, five million Syrians are refugees. This means that the other 6.3 million are displaced within Syria.
2. Four out of five Syrian refugees are children.
3. In just over a year after the civil uprising began, 500,000 Syrian refugees had left their homes.
4. Many Syrian refugees remain in the Middle East. They reside in countries such as Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, although an estimated 10% have relocated to Europe.
5. Many Syrians who fled into Northern Iraq are now trapped inside Iraq’s internal conflict. Because of the pre-existing conflict, Iraq struggles to meet the needs of the Syrian refugees.
6. In order to flee, many Syrian refugees attempt to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Not all of them make it across alive.
7. In January 2016, a reported 2,647 refugees fled to the United States, amounting to roughly 0.06% of the total refugee population.
8. Around 40,000 Syrian refugees have fled to Canada.
9. Nearly the entire population of Syria lives in poverty, with about 70% lacking access to clean drinking water.
10. In 2016, the U.N. declared that $4.5 billion was required in order to meet the urgent needs of Syrians, yet only $2.9 billion was actually received.

These 10 facts about Syrian refugees illustrate the always-escalating nature of the crisis, showing that aid is needed more than ever before.

– Danyel Harrigan

Photo: Flickr