Editing 2000 Camp David Summit (section)

===Refugees and the right of return===
{{Main|1948 Palestinian exodus|Palestinian right of return}}
Due to the first Arab-Israeli war, a significant number of Palestinian Arabs fled or were expelled from their homes inside what is now Israel. These [[Palestinian refugee|refugees]] numbered approximately 711,000 to 725,000 at the time. Today, they and their descendants number about four million, comprising about half the [[Palestinian people]]. Since that time, the Palestinians have demanded full implementation of the right of return, meaning that each refugee would be granted the option of returning to his or her home, with property restored, and receive compensation. Israelis asserted that allowing a right of return to Israel proper, rather than to the newly created Palestinian state, would mean an influx of Palestinians that would fundamentally alter the demographics of Israel, jeopardizing Israel's Jewish character and its existence as a whole.

At Camp David, the Palestinians maintained their traditional demand that the right of return be implemented. They demanded that Israel recognize the right of all refugees who so wished to settle in Israel, but to address Israel's demographic concerns, they promised that the right of return would be implemented via a mechanism agreed upon by both sides, which would try to channel a majority of refugees away from the option of returning to Israel.<ref>Gilead Sher (2006), p. 102</ref> According to U.S. Secretary of State [[Madeleine Albright]], some of the Palestinian negotiators were willing to privately discuss a limit on the number of refugees who would be allowed to return to Israel.<ref>Madeleine Albright (2003), p. 618</ref> Palestinians who chose to return to Israel would do so gradually, with Israel absorbing 150,000 refugees every year.

The Israeli negotiators denied that Israel was responsible for the refugee problem, and were concerned that any right of return would pose a threat to Israel's Jewish character. In the Israeli proposal, a maximum of 100,000 refugees would be allowed to return to Israel on the basis of humanitarian considerations or family reunification. All other people classified as Palestinian refugees would be settled in their present place of inhabitance, the Palestinian state, or third-party countries. Israel would help fund their resettlement and absorption. An international fund of $30 billion would be set up, which Israel would help contribute to, along with other countries, that would register claims for compensation of property lost by Palestinian refugees and make payments within the limits of its resources.<ref>Gilead Sher (2006), p. 101 and pp. 247–249.</ref>