The Palestinian refugee problem was the result of two wars (1948 and 1967), and attacks and massacres perpetrated by Jewish underground terrorist groups such as Haganah. Following the war of 1948, the UN Conciliation Commission estimated that there were 726,000 refugees outside and 32,000 inside the armistice lines. Of the approximately 800,000 Arabs originally situated in the area that became Israel, only some 100,000 remained in their homes and became an Arab minority in the Jewish state. In 1950, the newly-established UNRWA put the number at 957,000. The Israeli government calculates with numbers as low as 520,000, while Palestinian researchers suggest up to 850,000. During the second exodus in 1967, some 350,000 Palestinians left the West Bank and Golan area (UN estimates), almost half of them second-time refugees. The number of their descendants is estimated at 700,000. The refugee issue has been on the agenda of efforts concerning a settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict ever since. The right of return for Palestinian refugees is internationally recognized by UN Resolution 194 of December 1948. The number of Palestinians awaiting family reunification is currently estimated at 120,000. An additional estimated 100,000 persons have been denied re-entry into the West Bank and Gaza on grounds of having stayed abroad for periods longer than permitted by the Israeli authorities.Most refugee camps were established between 1948-1953 (Shufat Camp: 1965). Of the UNRWA-registered refugees, 367,593 were originally from the Jerusalem, Ram Allah and Hebron areas and fled mainly to Jordan and the West Bank; 566,777 came from the Beersheba/Gaza areas and mainly found refuge in the Gaza Strip; the majority of the 787,534 refugees from the Lydda-Ramle-Jaffa triangle fled to Jordan, while the 87,112 refugees from the northern districts of Nablus, Jenin and Tulkarem mainly found shelter in the camps of the West Bank; most of the 893,230 refugees from the Galilee and Haifa area fled to Lebanon and Syria (UNRWA, 1992). Although many refugees have moved out of the camps, they are still severely overcrowded with cramped housing, unpaved streets and open sewers. UNRWA is responsible for refugee camps; it provides health, rehabilitation, schools, training, and other services. The refugee issue is one of the permanent status issues to be dealt with when Israel and the PNA begin negotiations on a final settlement. On 7 March 1995 a Palestinian-Egyptian-Jordanian-Israeli Committee on Refugees of 1967 was established to deal with the issue and to find a solution to be integrated in the final settlement between Israel and the PLO/PNA. However, no progress has been made thus far, mainly due to controversy over how to define a ‘displaced’ Palestinian. The fate of the 1948 refugees is widely ignored. Source: UNRWA, June 1997. FOR OTHER RESOURCES REFERRED TO IN THE REFUGEES SEGMENT PLEASE CHECK THIS LINK
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