UN Commemorates 75 Years of Palestinian Displacement

The United Nations recently commemorated the 75th anniversary of the "Nakba" or "Catastrophe" that resulted in the displacement of 700,000 Palestinians in 1948. The intention of the commemoration was to spotlight the world's most protracted refugee crisis. Forty-eight years after the establishment of the state of Israel resulted in the displacement of Palestinians, 5.9 million Palestinians (including those originally displaced and their descendants) are registered as refugees. Palestinians are the largest group of stateless people in the world. UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, was founded in 1949 to provide assistance to Palestinian refugees and continues to do so today with the assistance of the international community. The U.S. government is the top donor to UNRWA, providing $344 million in 2022.

Below find an excellent review of the history of the region as well as analysis of the current situation.

"Generations of Palestinian Refugees Face Protracted Displacement and Dispossession" - Migration Policy Institute

"While many long-term challenges are rooted in ongoing conflict involving Israel, other factors have contributed to Palestinian refugees’ situation, including the near impossibility of obtaining citizenship in many host countries and UNRWA’s precarious funding."

https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/palestinian-refugees-dispossession

"UN Marks 75 Years Since Displacement of 700,000 Palestinians" - United Nations

https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/05/1136662