Palestinian refugees are defined by the UN as people whose "place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948, and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 War". The children of Palestinian refugees are also able to apply for refugee status. More than 500,000 of those refugees were already in eight crowded camps located across the Strip. Following Israel's warnings, the number of displaced people has risen rapidly and 1.9 million have fled their homes since 7 October, the UN says.
