Palestinian Australians (Arabic: فلسطينيو أستراليا), refers to Australian citizens of Palestinian origin or Palestinian immigrants who live in Australia. There are an estimated 7,000 Palestinians in Australia.
Contents
History
Like much of the Palestinian diaspora worldwide, many Palestinian migrants came from displaced backgrounds as part of a massive exodus of refugees and as a result of decades of war. The majority of Palestinians arrived to Australia holding passports of other Arab countries in which they had initially settled following their emigration from Palestine; it was not uncommon for different families to hold passports of different countries.
The 1967 Israeli-Arab war led many Palestinians to seek migration beyond the Arab world, propelled by experiences of conflict in the Middle East as well as discrimination and economic hardship as a stateless people. Migration waves continued to surge following the Lebanese Civil War starting in 1975 and the 1982 Lebanon War. The latest major wave came in the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War.
Demographics
Most Palestinians speak the Arabic language and are counted as Arab Australians.