Sri Lanka is once again in the top 10 countries in the world whose citizens seek asylum, the latest UNHCR report says. The total number of asylum seekers across the world had dipped in 2010, it noted.Sri Lanka was in the list of top 10 countries in 2007, as its Armed Forces began pushing into LTTE territory in the Northern Province. However, in the next two years, the country was No.12 and No.13 in the list of countries from where asylum seekers originate. In 2010, as many as 8874 persons from Sri Lanka sought asylum in 44 developed countries while in 2009, this number was higher – 9988.A total of 3.47 lakh asylum applications were lodged in 44 developed countries in 2010, marginally lower than the 3.68 lakh applications that were filed in 2009. A majority of the applications in both 2009 and 2010 were filed in Europe – 2.87 lakh and 2.69 lakh respectively.Statistics compiled by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees have shown a fall in the number of asylum-seekers in the industrialized world over the last 10 years.On Monday, UNHCR released the 2010 statistical overview of asylum applications lodged in Europe and selected non-European countries. In all, 44 industrialized countries were covered in the report on new asylum claims.