During the creation of the Zionist state in 1948, approximately three quarters of a million
Palestinians were forced to become refugees. Together with their descendants,
more than 4.3 million of these refugees are today registered with the United Nations while
over 1.7 million are not. According to The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (
UNRWA), one-third of the registered refugees live in 59 U.N.-run camps in Jordan,
Lebanon, and
Syria, and in the
West Bank and Gaza Strip sections of Palestine. The majority of the rest live in and around cities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and of neighboring countries.