The story of the Palestinian Refugees at Al Tanf begins in 1948 when some 5,000 Palestinians were brought to Iraq after they were expelled from their homes during the conflict the erupted from Israel's formation. Over 50 years later, these refugees are being driven out of their homes again by the war in Iraq, but now they have nowhere to go. These people are currently stateless as no country will claim them.
A group of about 800 tried to flee to Syria to escape the war and persecution. They were met at the border of Syria with an unexpected opposition. They were denied entry into Syria on the basis of a lack of travel documents. With nowhere to go, the Palestinian's set up a camp in the no-man's land between the Syrian and Iraqi borders.
Scale
The camp has seen about 1300 refugees over its lifetime with the population holding steady at about 800. The camp has around 125 children which are a major safety concern with a major highway located just a few yards away from the camp.
The camp itself is about the size of 6 football fields placed side by side. Within this area are about 100 to 125 tents spaced about 10 ft apart. Some families have connected several tents to create a large space for the family to reside in.
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