팔레스타인 난민의 발생 배경

The Origins of Palestine Refugee Problem

As of 2015, there are 5.6 million Palestinian refugees across the world. As seen in debates between Old historians and New historians, discussions on the causes behind the Palestinian refugee dilemma have lasted for several decades; however, conclusions have been biased based on emotional associations and ethnic affiliations. Moreover, most of these studies have considered the Arab-Israeli war in 1948 to be the originator of the refugee issue. However, in order to have a balanced understanding of the origin of this issue, one needs to focus on UN resolution 181, which was ratified in 1947, and the civil war that followed. The partition plan of resolution 181 was based on the premise of Palestinian Arabs leaving their homeland, and as a result provoked the civil war that led to a large number of refugees. According to the partition plan, people who had lived in the newly designated areas for other ethnic populations were required to relocate; and, as the ethnic villages were blended along the territory, it was not secure when people tried to cross through other territories. Therefore, efforts were made to claim other villages in order to make movement in the region more secure. This action led to civil war. However, the civil war exposed the disorganization of Palestinian authorities and forces which were not strong enough to protect their inhabitants. Palestinian Arabs did not have secure leadership, trained military, or weapons. Moreover, there was a lack of morale due to previous brutal operations by Jewish authorities. In particular, although there is controversy, one of the Israeli operation plans, Plan-Dalet, a military plan for controlling territory and evacuating Arabs in their territory, has been considered an ethnic cleansing plan by a group of scholars. Regardless of the intention of the plan, the fact is that Plan-D and following operations intimidated Arab populations to leave their home either voluntarily or forcefully. The Palestinian refugee problem has not been solved for more than 70 years, and refugees have yet to be granted their right to return their homeland. The responsibilities are not on only one side-Palestine Arabs or Israeli Jews-but, I argue, on all sides including international society. Therefore, the solution of the refugee problem should be discussed among the all responsible actors under the shared perception on the responsibilities.