Yemeni Family in Delhi Awaiting Refugee Recognition ‘Assaulted’ by Police, UNHCR

In 2021, Farah’s (name changed) family came to India seeking refuge from a ravaging civil war in Yemen and hoping to start their life anew. After a year, they are yet to be recognised as refugees despite staying at a rented space in Delhi till September. As their financial condition deteriorated from bad to worse, they approached the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for help. After receiving no assistance, they decided to camp outside the UNHCR office. The family alleges that they were assaulted by the Delhi Police and UNHCR security guards at Vasant Vihar on September 27. Farah says that when her family came to India, they applied for asylum with the UNHCR but were only given a blue card, which shows that they had applied for asylum. To date, they have not received their refugee cards. Newsclick tried to contact the UNHCR for a comment but there was no response.