General Statistics on the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)
 

Size

• Land area (British Mandate of Palestine, now Israel and the OPT): 26,323 km² (=10,162 miles²)

• The Occupied Palestinian Territories (WBGS): 6,170 km²

• West Bank: 5,800 km², 130 km long, 40-65 km in width

• Gaza strip: 365 km², 45 km long, 5-12 km in width (self rule area: 210 km²)

Population[1]

After the 1948 war, most of the Palestinian population was scattered as refugees in the Gaza strip and West Bank, other Arab countries, and further abroad. In 1967 Israel seized the Gaza strip and West Bank.

• West Bank and Gaza (mid-2001): 3,298,951 (West Bank: 2,102,360;Gaza: 1,196,591)

• Palestinians in what is now Israel: 1,012,741

• Refugee population outside Israel and the OPT: 3,874,738 (Lebanon: 382,973; Syria: 391,651; Jordan: 1,639,718)

• Refugees in the OPT: West Bank: 607,770; Gaza strip: 852,626.

• 1/3 of all refugees are still living in 59 refugee camps in the neighboring countries and the OPT.

• The Gaza strip has 8 refugee camps housing some 400.000 people which is about half the refugee population in the strip. The camps in Gaza are amongst the most densely populated areas in the world (in average there are 356.5 m² per inhabitant in Gaza. In comparison every inhabitant in Ramallah has 3,978.1 m², Jerusalem: 1,029.4 m², Nablus: 3,244.3 m², Jenin: 2,846.8 m²).

• The biggest and most densely populated Palestinian refugee camp in the world is Jabaliya in the outskirts of Gaza City. 90.000 people live in an area of 3 km².

• Population between 0-19 years (mid-2001): WBGS: 57%, WB: 55%, Gaza: 61%.

• Population growth: WBGS: 5%, WB: 4.7%, Gaza: 5.4%

• Fertility rate (1999): WBGS: 5.9%, WB: 5.5%, Gaza: 6.8%.

• Average household size (persons): WBGS: 6.1, WB: 5.7, Gaza: 6.9

[Last updated 28 June 2002]