WHAT IS THE “RIGHT OF RETURN”?
Right of return
noun. العودة حق ḥaqq al-awda
The principle affirming that Palestinian refugees and their descendants, who were displaced or expelled from their homes during the establishment of the state of Israel, have a right to return to their land and property.
The right of return, or what Palestinians know as “Haq al-Awda” in Arabic, refers to the position and principle that Palestinian refugees, both first-generation refugees and their descendants, have a right to return to the land and property that they themselves or their forebears were forced to leave across historic Palestine as a result of the establishment of the state of Israel. This position is firmly grounded in international law. The issue of return captures a wide range of possibilities and propositions, all of which are designed to address the fundamental question of how those who were forced to leave their homes between 1947 and 1949 can return and receive justice. The right of return is at the core of the Palestinian struggle and a matter that demonstrates, more than any other, the disruption and violence that was foundational to Israel’s establishment. It therefore has singular political, social, cultural and symbolic resonance for the Palestinians, as well as moral force.
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