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There Is No International Law Demanding a Palestinian ‘Right of Return’
US President Joe Biden addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, Sept. 24, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Mike Segar
The so-called “right of return” has been a fundamental Palestinian demand ever since the initial effort to eliminate the nascent state of Israel failed 76 years ago.
In recent days, however, the Associated Press (AP) upgraded the unfulfilled aspiration into international law.
In their Oct. 31 article, “Banning UNRWA will lead to a vacuum and more suffering for Palestinians, the agency’s chief says,” AP’s Baraa Anwer and Sara El Deeb invented: “International law gives Palestinian refugees and their descendants the right to return to their homes.”
An Oct. 29 AP article by Joseph Krauss, Julia Frankel, and Melanie Lidman also erred, citing a non-existent Palestinian right under international law to return to their 1948 homes: “Palestinians say refugees and their descendants, who now number nearly 6 million, should be allowed to exercise their right under international law to return home” (“Israel approves two bills that could halt UNRWA’s aid delivery to Gaza . . .”)
In fact, there is nothing in international law which gives Palestinian refugees and their descendants “the right to return to their homes.”
The non-binding UN Resolution 194, passed by the United Nations General Assembly, does not “give” Palestinians “the right to return to their homes.” Moreover, its language — “should be permitted” — denotes a suggestion, not a guarantee. The section of the resolution dealing with refugees states:
RESOLVES that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible;
INSTRUCTS the Conciliation Commission to facilitate the repatriation, resettlement and economic and social rehabilitation of the refugees and the payment of compensation, and to maintain close relations with the Director of the United Nations Relief for Palestine Refugees and, through him, with the appropriate organs and agencies of the United Nations;
As CAMERA’s Alex Safian has previously detailed, the resolution conditions the return of refugees (Palestinian refugees are not specified, and therefore the resolution equally applies to Jewish refugees from Arab countries) on their willingness to “live at peace with their neighbors,” a condition that was not accepted by the Palestinian leadership or the vast majority of the refugees themselves who invoked Resolution 194.
Furthermore, the resolution placed repatriation, resettlement, and compensation on equal footing; meaning that return is one of several possible options.
Finally, the main part of the resolution called for the establishment of a Conciliation Commission, which convened in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1949. While both the Arab states and Israel attended, the former declined to negotiate directly with the Jewish State and rejected any agreements.
In the past, the AP has accurately reported that Palestinians demand a right of return, or that they believe they have a right of return.
Examples of accurate AP coverage careful not to misreport that Palestinians have a right of return include:
Aug. 29, 2024: “Palestinians believe they have the right to return to their pre-1948 homes.”
Jan. 29, 2024: “The Palestinians say the refugees and their descendants, who now number nearly 6 million across the Middle East, have the right to return to their homes.”
Nov. 30, 2021: “The Palestinians say the refugees and their descendants have a ‘right of return’ to their homes in what is now Israel, a position supported by host countries.”
June 3, 2019: “Symbolically, Palestinians see UNRWA as sustaining their core demand that refugees have the ‘right of return’ to their lost homes in what is now Israel – a prospect that Israel rejects.”
Oct. 8, 2018: “It accuses the agency of perpetuating the conflict by helping promote what it considers an unrealistic Palestinian demand that refugees have the “right of return” to long-lost homes in what is now Israel.”
[emphasis added in all]
In short, while it’s entirely accurate to state that Palestinians demand a “right of return,” or Palestinians believe they have a “right of return,” it is completely false to say that international law gives Palestinians a “right of return” to homes some of them had in 1948.
CAMERA contacted AP to request a correction. As of this writing, no correction has yet appeared, suggesting a commitment to factual accuracy somewhat lagging behind the steadfast Palestinian insistence on the “right of return.” Stay tuned for any updates.
Tamar Sternthal is the director of CAMERA’s Israel Office. A version of this article previously appeared on the CAMERA website.
The post There Is No International Law Demanding a Palestinian ‘Right of Return’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Trump Is Lying When He Speaks of Peace
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with government officials in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2025. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Donald Trump on Saturday of lying when the US president said during his Gulf tour this week that he wanted peace in the region.
On the contrary, said Khamenei, the United States uses its power to give “10-ton bombs to the Zionist (Israeli) regime to drop on the heads of Gaza’s children.”
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates on Friday that Iran had to move quickly on a US proposal for its nuclear program or “something bad’s going to happen.”
His remarks, said Khamenei, “aren’t even worth responding to.” They are an “embarrassment to the speaker and the American people,” Khamenei added.
“Undoubtedly, the source of corruption, war, and conflict in this region is the Zionist regime — a dangerous, deadly cancerous tumor that must be uprooted; it will be uprooted,” he said at an event at a religious center in Tehran, according to state media.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Trump speaks about peace while simultaneously making threats.
“Which should we believe?” Pezeshkian said at a naval event in Tehran. “On the one hand, he speaks of peace and on the other, he threatens with the most advanced tools of mass killing.”
Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. “We are not seeking war,” Pezeshkian said.
While Trump said on Friday that Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear program, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received any such proposal. “There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes…” he said.
Araqchi warned on Saturday that Washington’s constant change of stance prolongs nuclear talks, state TV reported.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that America repeatedly defines a new framework for negotiations that prolongs the process,” the broadcast quoted Araqchi as saying.
Pezeshkian said Iran would not “back down from our legitimate rights”.
“Because we refuse to bow to bullying, they say we are source of instability in the region,” he said.
A fourth round of Iran-U.S. talks ended in Oman last Sunday. A new round has not been scheduled yet.
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Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday
Doha, Qatar. Photo: StellarD via Wikimedia Commons.
A new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel is underway in Qatar’s Doha, Hamas official Taher al-Nono told Reuters on Saturday.
He said the two sides were discussing all issues without “pre-conditions.”
Nono said Hamas was “keen to exert all the effort needed” to help mediators make the negotiations a success, adding there was “no certain offer on the table.”
The negotiations come despite Israel preparing to expand operations in the Gaza Strip as they seek “operational control” in some areas of the war-torn enclave.
The return to negotiations also comes after US President Donald Trump ended a Middle East tour on Friday with no apparent progress towards a new ceasefire, although he acknowledged Gaza’s growing hunger crisis and the need for aid deliveries.
The post Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during an interview with Reuters in The Hague, Netherlands, Feb. 12, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
i24 News – Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan has stepped down temporarily as an investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct by United Nations investigators is nearing its final phase, Reuters reported on Friday citing sources from the international court.
Khan allegedly forced sexual intercourse upon a member of staff on multiple occasions, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, linking the allegations to Khan’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant.
A statement is expected later today announcing that Khan is going on administrative leave, according to a source in the prosecutor’s office.
The post Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe first appeared on Algemeiner.com.