The number of Syrians who have fled abroad since the outbreak of civil war in their country has risen to more than 4 million, the largest number from any crisis in almost 25 years, the United Nations said Thursday.

A recent wave of people leaving Syria and an update of Turkish statistics confirm the tragic milestone, according to the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR. The agency said in a statement that 7.6 million additional people are displaced from their homes within Syria.

The 4 million refugees are the most to flee a conflict since the Afghan civil war forced 4.6 million out of their country beginning in 1992.

« This is the biggest refugee population from a single conflict in a generation, » said U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres in a statement. « It is a population that needs the support of the world but is instead living in dire conditions and sinking deeper into poverty. »

The new figure shows that the flow of refugees is accelerating only 10 months after the agency recorded more than 3 million Syrians fleeing their country.
AP