Palestinian expulsion from Kuwait

Kuwaiti Palestinian refugees

Total Kuwaiti Palestinian refugee population today (including descendants):	~0.5 million
Total refugees in 1991:	443,000
Regions with significant populations:
Languages:	Arabic
Religions:	Sunni Islam

The Palestinian expulsion from Kuwait or 1991 Palestinian exodus from Kuwait took place at the end of the Gulf War, when Kuwait expelled almost 450,000 Palestinians. The policy which led to this exodus was a response to the alignment of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and the PLO with Saddam Hussein, who had earlier invaded Kuwait. The exodus took place during one week in March 1991, following Kuwait's liberation from Iraqi occupation. The story received little media attention in the aftermath of the liberation of Kuwait.

Background

Prior to the exodus, Palestinians made up about 30% of Kuwait's population of 2.2 million. More than half a million Palestinian Arabs and their desendants resided in Kuwait, after arriving there primarily from Jordan, attracted by favorable conditions of high education and employment through 1970s and 1980s.

Exodus

The policy which led to this exodus was a response to the alignment of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and the PLO with Saddam Hussein, who had earlier invaded Kuwait. The exodus took place during one week in March 1991, following Kuwait's liberation from Iraqi occupation. In total, Kuwait expelled 443,000 Palestinians. Several Palestinians were killed by vigilante groups including some with links to the royal family. With the completion of the exodus only 7,000 Palestinians remained.

Aftermath

By 2006 only a few had returned to Kuwait and today the number of Palestinians living in Kuwait is less than 40,000 (under 3% of the population).

On December 12, 2004, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas apologized for the PLO's support of Saddam Hussein during the invasion of Kuwait.

See also

• 1991 uprisings in Iraq
• 1948 Palestinian exodus
• Jewish exodus from Arab countries