Displaced after 'Nakba,' Palestinians scattered in 61 camps

CAIRO

 Around 957,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes 67 years ago when what they describe as armed Zionist gangs invaded their land before the state of Israel was established in 1948.

As they gear up to mark the anniversary of "Nakba Day" – which commemorates the mass expulsion of Palestinians in 1948 – approximately 1.5 million Palestinian refugees remain scattered in 61 different refugee camps in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

Around 3.8 million others are dispersed around the world, according to the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA).

According to UNRWA data, some 2.1 million live in Jordan; 1.3 million in Gaza; 914,000 in the West Bank; 500,000 in Syria; and 447,000 in Lebanon.

Following is a list of all Palestinian refugee camps according to the territory in which they are located:

• The Gaza Strip (home to eight camps) 

The Jabalia camp

Home to 108,000 refugees; famous for producing the first spark of the First Palestinian Intifada in 1987

The Al-Shati camp

Home to 82,000 refugees; situated on less than 1 square kilometer on the coast of the Gaza Strip

The Rafah camp

Home to 99,000 refugees; located near the border with Egypt

The Bureij camp

Home to 31,000 refugees; located in the central Gaza Strip

The Deir al-Balah camp

Home to 20,500 refugees; situated on the coast of the Gaza Strip

The Khan Younis camp

Home to 68,000 refugees; located in the southern Gaza Strip

The Maghazi camp

Home to 24,000 refugees; sits on on 0.6 square kilometers in the central Gaza Strip

The Nuseirat camp

Home to 62,000 refugees; located in the central Gaza Strip

• The West Bank (home to 19 camps)

The Birzeit camp

Home to 132,000 refugees; sits on on 0.16 square kilometers in the central West Bank

The Deir Ammar camp

Home to 2,400 refugees; sits on 0.16 square kilometers near Ramallah

The Amaari camp

Home to 10,500 refugees; sits on on 0.36 square kilometers in southwestern Ramallah

The Jalazone camp

Home to 9,000 refugees; sits on 0.3 square kilometers in northern Ramallah

The Silwad camp

Home to 600 refugees; located in eastern Ramallah

The Ein Arik camp

Home to 500 refugees; sits on only 0.025 square kilometers in western Ramallah

The Nour Shams camp

Home to 9,000 refugees; sits on 0.23 square kilometers in the northern West Bank

The Tulkarm camp

Home to 20,000 refugees; sits on 0.18 square kilometers in the western West Bank

The Dheisheh camp

Home to 9,000 refugees; sits on 0.34 square kilometers in the southern West Bank

The Bait Jibrin camp

Home to 2,000 refugees; located in the city of Bethlehem

The Aida camp

Home to 4,700 refugees; located in the southern West Bank

The Askar camp

Home to 16,000 refugees; sits on only 0.1 square kilometers in the northern West Bank

The Ein Beit al-Maa camp

Home to 6,700 refugees; located in the northern West Bank

The Balata camp

Home to 23,600 refugees; sits on 0.46 square kilometers in the northern West Bank

The Faraa camp

Home to 7,600 refugees; sits on 0.26 square kilometers in the northeastern West Bank

The Aroub camp

Home to 10,400 refugees; sits on 0.4 square kilometers in the southern West Bank

The Fawwar camp

Home to 8,000 refugees; located in southern Al-Khalil (Hebron)

The Aqabat Jaber camp

Home to 6,400 refugees; located in eastern Jericho

The Jenin camp

Home to 16,000 refugees; sits on 0.42 square kilometers in the northern West Bank

• Lebanon (home to 12 camps)

The Rashidieh camp

Home to 27,500 refugees; located in southern Lebanon

The Burj el-Shemali camp

Home to 20,000 refugees; sits on 1.34 square kilometers in southern Lebanon

The Al-Buss camp

Home to 10,000 refugees; sits on 0.8 square kilometers in southern Lebanon

The Ain al-Hilweh camp

Home to 48,000 refugees; sits on 2.9 square kilometers

The Mieh Mieh camp

Home to 4,500 refugees; sits on 0.5 square kilometers in southern Lebanon

The Burj al-Barajneh camp

Home to 16,000 refugees; sits on 1 square kilometer in southern Beirut

The Shatila camp

Home to 8,500 refugees; sits on 0.4 square kilometers in central Beirut

The Mar Elias camp

Home to 600 refugees; sits on 0.5 square kilometers in southwestern Beirut

The Dbayeh camp

Home to 4,000 refugees, mostly Christians; sits on 0.8 square kilometers in eastern Beirut

The Wavel camp

Home to 8,000 refugees; sits on 0.4 square kilometers in eastern Lebanon

The Beddawi camp

Home to 17,000 refugees; sits on 2 square kilometers in northern Lebanon

The Nahr al-Bared camp

Home to 35,000 refugees; sits on 2 square kilometers in northern Lebanon

• Jordan (home to ten camps)

The Zarqa camp

Home to 20,000 refugees; sits on 0.18 square kilometers in southeastern Zarqa city

The Irbid

Home to 25,000 refugees; sits on 0.24 square kilometers in northern Jordan

The Hussein

Home to 29,000 refugees; sits on 0.4 square kilometers in capital Amman

The Wihdat camp

Home to 51,000 refugees; sits on 0.5 square kilometers in Amman

The Souf

Home to 20,000 refugees; sits on 0.5 square kilometers in northern Jordan

The Talbieh

Home to 7,000 refugees; sits on 0.1 square kilometers in Amman

The Marka

Home to 53,000 refugees; sits on 1 square kilometer in eastern Jordan

The Husn camp

Home to 22,000 refugees; sits on 0.8 square kilometers in northern Jordan

The Jerash camp

Home to 24,000 refugees; located in northern Jordan

The Baqaa camp

Home to 104,000 refugees; sits on 1.4 square kilometers in northern Jordan

• Syria (home to 12 camps)

The Daraa camp

Home to 13,000 refugees; located in southern Syria

The Yarmouk camp

Home to 18,000 refugees; located in Damascus. The camp has been hard hit by the Syrian conflict, leading to the displacement of most of its 144,000 former residents

The Sbeineh camp

Home to 21,000 refugees; sits on 0.03 square kilometers in southern Damascus

The Qabr Essit camp

Home to 22,000 refugees; sits on 0.02 square kilometers near Damascus

The Neirab camp

Home to 19,000 refugees; sits on 1.4 square kilometers in Aleppo

The Latakia

Home to 10,000 refugees; sits on 0.2 square kilometers in northwestern Syria

The Khan Eshieh camp

Home to 19,000 refugees; sits on 0.7 square kilometers in southwestern Damascus

The Khan Dannun camp

Home to 9,500 refugees; sits on 0.03 square kilometers in southern Damascus

The Jaramana camp

Home to 18,500 refugees; sits on 0.03 square kilometers near Damascus

The Homs camp

Home to 22,500 refugees; sits on 0.15 square kilometers in central Syria

The Hama camp

Home to 8,500 refugees; sits on 0.06 square kilometers in central Syria

The Ein al-Tal camp

Home to 5,500 refugees; sits on 0.16 square kilometers in northeastern Aleppo

The Israel-Palestine conflict began in 1917 when the British government, in the now-famous "Balfour Declaration," called for "the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people."

In 1948, a newly-formed state inside historical Palestine – "Israel" – was established.

The Palestinian diaspora has since become one of the largest in the world. Palestinian refugees are now spread across Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and other countries, while many have settled in refugee camps in the Palestinian West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

For many Palestinians, the right to return to their homes in historical Palestine remains a key demand.