Angelina Jolie is back to work following her trip to the Big Apple. The actor, 46, visited refugees in the West African country of Burkina Faso on June 20 to mark World Refugee Day. As Special Envoy to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Angelina joined refugees at a camp in the region of Sahel, speaking to those who have been displaced by Islamic insurgency.
“There is nowhere I would rather be today than here, with refugees, the people I admire most in the world,” the humanitarian said while donned in a headscarf. More than one million people have been displaced and Burkina Faso currently accommodates more than 22,000 refugees, per AP. In her speech, the filmmaker said it was time for powerful countries to “wake up” and help.
“We have to wake up to the track we are on globally, with so many conflicts raging and the very real possibility that climate change will force tens if not hundreds of millions of people to have to leave their homes in the future, with no possibility of return,” she said. “The way the international community tries to address conflict and insecurity is broken.”
“It is erratic, it is unequal, it is built on inherited privilege, it is subject to the whim of political leaders, and it is geared towards the interests of powerful countries,” she continued, adding, “The truth is we are not doing half of what we could and should to enable refugees to return home, or to support host countries, like Burkina Faso, coping for years with a fraction of the humanitarian aid needed to provide basic support and protection.”
The trip comes after Angelina spent some time in New York with her children last week. The actor reunited with her ex-husband Jonny Lee Miller and even reportedly introduced her two sons, Pax, 17, and Knox, 12, to her former British beau. A source said at the time that Jonny and Knox “got on like a house on fire” — and that Angelina was thrilled at the prospect of Jonny becoming a trusted confidant for Pax, who has expressed interest in moving to the city.
“Angie is very happy because Pax keeps making noise about moving to New York someday soon, maybe even for school,” the source said. “She’s glad he’ll have someone she trusts around for him to go to for advice or just to see a friendly face.” The meeting comes amid Angelina’s custody battle for the two boys — as well as her four other children, Shiloh, 15, Vivienne, 12, Maddox, 19, and Zahara — with ex-husband Brad Pitt. The two, who divorced in 2019 after over a decade together, share joint custody of all six children, but the legal fight continues as Angelina pursues sole custody.