Who are the Palestinian citizens of Israel?

Palestinian citizens of Israel, a minority in their homeland, have long endured discrimination, marginalisation and violence. They are descendants of Palestinians who remained within the borders of Israel after its establishment in 1948, following the exodus of 80 percent of the Palestinian population during the Nakba. Today, around two million Palestinian citizens make up approximately 20 percent of Israel's population, residing primarily in Palestinian-majority towns and cities in the Galilee, the Triangle region and the Naqab desert.

Although granted Israeli citizenship in 1948, Palestinian citizens have historically faced state violence and discrimination under military rule from 1948 to 1966. During this period, they endured movement restrictions, curfews, state repression and political limitations. The darkest example is the Kafr Qasim massacre in 1956, where Israeli forces killed 49 Palestinian citizens in a village curfew violation.

The military rule ended in 1966, but discriminatory laws and policies persisted under successive Israeli governments. As many as 65 Israeli laws enacted since 1948 explicitly or implicitly discriminate against Palestinian citizens in areas such as land ownership and public services.