Why do ethnic conflicts often lead to refugee flows and internal displacement?

Ethnic conflicts frequently result in refugee flows and internal displacement because they are often characterized by gross human rights violations, including mass killings, torture, and systematic discrimination. These conflicts often involve the deliberate targeting of civilians to create fear, hasten military surrender, or achieve specific political and territorial objectives.123

A primary driver of displacement is ethnic cleansing, a strategy explicitly aimed at creating ethnically homogeneous geographic areas. This process involves the forced deportation or expulsion of specific ethnic groups from their homes and traditional lands. By destroying civilian infrastructure, monuments, and places of worship, perpetrators seek to remove all physical vestiges of the targeted population, leaving individuals with no choice but to flee to survive.31

Beyond direct violence, the collapse of political and economic institutions during protracted conflicts creates environments where safety and basic needs cannot be met, further compelling populations to leave their homes. Because these conflicts target individuals based on their identity, displacement is often a systematic consequence of the violence rather than a mere byproduct of war.123