Beirut, March 15 (IANS): Visiting UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said that the crisis in Syria has led to the displacement of nine million people, media reported.

"Three years have passed on this horrible Syrian crisis and that means more displaced people to expect. Today we have around 2.6 million Syrians displaced to neighbouring countries and more than 6.5 million Syrians displaced inside Syria," Xinhua quoted Guterres as saying at a meeting with Lebanon's Minister of Foreign Affairs Gebran Bassil Friday.

Guterres expressed his gratitude to the "generosity of the Lebanese and the government of Lebanon", adding that "Lebanon hosts most of the Syrians who have displaced to the neighbouring countries".

"We understand the great impact this situation is putting on the Lebanese economy and society, and the repercussions of the Syrian crisis on Lebanon's security situation," he said.

He called on the international community to "show more solidarity with Lebanon and provide financial support and share the burden because Lebanon cannot be left alone to confront the big challenges in these hard conditions".

Lebanon hosts around one million Syrian refugees according to UN estimates while the Lebanese authorities put the figure at around 1.2 million.