Internally Displaced People
Internally displaced people, or IDPs, are people who have fled their homes, often for reasons such as armed conflict, violence or large-scale natural disasters, but unlike refugees and asylum seekers, they remain inside their home country and have not crossed an international border.[6] UHCR’s original mandate does not cover IDPs but once persons are displaced, they are protected by international human rights law and domestic laws.[7] IDPs are usually considered to be particularly vulnerable because they are often in transit or in hiding, sometimes in inhospitable and dangerous environments.[8] For example, many people in Libya fleeing armed conflict in cities such as Misrata during the overthrow of Gaddafi’s regime who remained within Libya’s borders became Internally Displaced Persons.