A/RES/70/165
United Nations
Distr.: General
22 February 2016
General Assembly
Seventieth session
Agenda item 72 (b)
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 17 December 2015
[on the report of the Third Committee (A/70/489/Add.2)]
70/165. Protection of and assistance to internally
displaced persons
The General Assembly,
Recalling that internally displaced persons are persons or groups of persons who
have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual
residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict,
situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border, 1
Recognizing that internally displaced persons are to enjoy, in full equality, the
same rights and freedoms under international and domestic law as do other persons in
their country,
Deeply disturbed by the alarmingly high numbers of internally displaced persons
throughout the world, for reasons including violations and abuses of human rights and
violations of international humanitarian law, armed conflict, persecution, violence and
other reasons, including terrorism, as well as natural and human -made disasters, who
receive inadequate protection and assistance, and conscious of the serious challenges
that this is creating for the international community,
Recognizing that natural disasters are a cause of internal displacement, and
concerned about factors, such as climate change, that are expected to exacerbate the
impact of natural hazards and climate-related events,
Recognizing also that the risk of becoming displaced as a result of a natural
disaster has doubled in the last four decades and that the consequences of hazards can
be prevented or substantially mitigated by integrating disaster risk reduction strategies
into national development policies and programmes,
Recognizing further that internally displaced persons can be exposed to
increased vulnerability when their host communities are affected by natural disasters,
Conscious of the human rights, humanitarian and development dimensions, as
well as the possible peacebuilding dimension, of internal displacement, including in
long-term displacement situations, the often heightened vulnerability of women and
children as well as older persons and persons with disabilities and the responsibilities
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1
See Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (E/CN.4/1998/53/Add.2, annex), introduction, para. 2.
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