UN: 110,000 fled Ukraine for Russia this year

UN: 110,000 fled Ukraine for Russia this year
By JOHN HEILPRIN
— Jun. 27, 2014 7:24 AM EDT


A girl stands in a tent in a camp for refugees from the conflict in Ukraine's east on the border with Ukraine in the town of Donetsk in Rostov-on-Don region, Russia, Friday, June 20, 2014. Clashes between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russia rebels flared ahead of the publication of a presidential peace plan that includes a unilateral cease-fire. (AP Photo/Sergey Pivovarov)

GENEVA (AP) — Some 110,000 Ukrainians have fled this year for Russia and another 54,000 have fled their homes but stayed in the country as Ukraine fights separatist rebels, the U.N. refugee agency said Friday.

Only 9,500 of those fleeing for Russia have sought refugee status but many others are too afraid of future reprisals if they do return to Ukraine to make a formal request, said agency spokeswoman Melissa Fleming, citing official Russian figures and other U.N. information.

Another 750 Ukrainians have requested refugee status in Poland, Belarus, Czech Republic and Romania, according to U.N. figures.

SNIP------------

Inside Ukraine, the single largest concentration of refugees is in the town of Svyatogorsk in the Donetsk region, which has declared independence from the government in Kiev.

"The rise in numbers of the past week coincides with a recent deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine," said Fleming. "Displaced people cite worsening law and order, fear of abductions, human rights violations and the disruption of state services."

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/un-110000-fled-ukraine-russia-year