The Palestinian Arab right of return is a hotly disputed topic in Middle East politics, and plays an important role in negotiations between Israel, the Palestinians and Arab states.

By the Arabs, the right of return is commonly understood as the right of the Palestinian refugees to return to the homes they had possessed prior to the 1948 Arab-Israeli war and the Six-Day War. Several early UN resolutions called upon Israel to grant this right, although most parties would currently opt for a multilateral solution accepted by Israel, the Palestinians and the hosting countries.

The right of return can be seen, next to the question of the status of Jerusalem, as one of the major impediments of the Peace process. Many Israelis fear that granting all of the current 8 million Palestinian refugees a right to return to Israel would lead to a demographic shift which would remove its identity as a Jewish state. Furthermore, if a large proportion of the exiled Palestinians were indeed to return -- which many read as likely since they are discriminated against and live in miserable conditions in their present host countries -- catastrophic overpopulation would result.

Even if a smaller number of refugees were to return, as little as one million, it could still gravely alter Israel's character as a Jewish state (in addition to having a severe impact on its economy, environment and other areas). A large majority of Jewish Israelis find this prospect unacceptable.

Some, however, believe that if Israel were one day to acknowledge a right of return, the ensuing changes might be positive for all parties [1].

The Arab states have for decades insisted on this right as one of the main conditions for peace. The Oslo accords were only made possible, because both sides agreed to leave this question open for future negotiations.

In June 2003, a survey of Palestinians living in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan and Lebanon found that only 10% (373,000 people) would become residents of Israel if given a choice. The majority would prefer to live in a Palestinian state, either in an existing Palestinian area or in an area that becomes Palestinian as the result of a territorial exchange. These results are in stark contrast with Israeli public opinion, which believes that a much greater number of Palestinians would wish to live in Israel.

Further meanings of the right of return:

• Under Israeli law, any person of Jewish heritage can immigrate to Israel.
• German law allows persons of German descent living in Eastern countries like Russia (so-called "Aussiedler") to return to Germany and acquire German citizenship.

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