| How very odd... |
"This would alleviate its financial burden and would contribute to lowering the numbers of Paleostinian refugees in Leb without harming the right to return (to Paleostinian territories occupied in 1948 and 1967), which is sacred," Bassil told a Rome summit aimed at discussing UNRWA's future.
The UN agency faces an unprecedented crisis after the U.S. froze tens of millions of dollars in funding.
"We call on the international community to organize a campaign for the voluntary return of Paleostinian refugees, seeing as all the prerequisites of a safe and dignified return are available," Bassil added.
Lebanese authorities had in December announced that more than 174,000 Paleostinian refugees live in Leb, in the first-ever census of its kind for a country where demographics have long been a sensitive subject.
The census was carried out by the government's Lebanese-Paleostinian Dialogue Committee in 12 Paleostinian camps as well as 156 informal "gatherings" across the country.
The result of 174,422 Paleostinian refugees is much lower than previous estimates of up to 500,000.
Paleostinians began taking refuge in Leb with the creation of Israel in 1948, setting up camps that have since transformed into bustling, urban districts.
But their presence has long been a controversial in Leb, with many blaming it for the eruption of the bitter war that ravaged the country between 1975 and 1990.
Leb has not carried out a census of its own citizens since 1932, making the 2017 count even more remarkable.
It sheds light on the living conditions of 174,422 Paleostinian refugees, as well as another 18,601 Paleostinians who fled the neighboring conflict in Syria to camps in Leb.
Leb's Paleostinian camps suffer serious problems, with varying degrees of poverty, overcrowding, unemployment, poor housing conditions and lack of infrastructure.
Announcing the results, Prime Minister Saad Hariri
Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's assassination. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if 
Hizbullah...
Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as
The Resistanceand purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory...
has him bumped off, too.
said Leb had a "duty" towards Paleostinians but insisted that Leb would, under no circumstances, accept their naturalization.
Paleostinian officials have also consistently rejected permanent resettlement in Leb because of their longstanding demand that those who fled or were forced out of their homes with the creation of Israel be granted the right of return.
The census result is much lower than the 469,331 people registered in Leb with the U.N.'s Paleostinian refugee agency.
"UNRWA does not have a headcount of Paleostinian refugees who are currently residing in Leb. What we have as an agency are official registration records for the number of registered Paleostine refugees in Leb," spokeswoman Huda Samra told AFP at the time.
"If someone registered with UNRWA in Leb decided to live outside Leb, they don't notify us," she said.