The Palestinian diaspora has expressed dismay over the statement made in the US by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Ehud Barak, that "a solution for them should be found in the countries where they are living now".
They see this pronouncement as prejudging "final status" negotiations on the refugee issue and dictating who may or may not live in the Palestinian state-to-be.
There are 4.3 million exiled Palestinians as compared with 4.2 million living at home. More than 3 million of the exiles live in states bordering Israel - Jordan, Syria and Lebanon - a million of them in refugee camps in conditions of considerable hardship.
In Jordan, Palestinians from the West Bank have full citizenship rights while those expelled by Israel from Gaza in 1967, who are considered former Egyptian wards, are given two-year passports which Jordan may extend to five.
Both groups are permitted to work. Palestinians living in Syria may work but have no right to citizenship. Those in Lebanon are granted the status of "refugee residents". They do not enjoy freedom of movement and cannot work or apply for naturalisation.
As Palestinians in Lebanon are largely Sunni Muslim, granting them citizenship would tilt the delicate communal balance in favour of this, the second-largest community.
The Sunni Muslim Lebanese Prime Minister, Mr Selim alHoss, accused Mr Barak of damaging the prospects of the peace process and rejected the permanent settlement of Palestinians in his country.
"The right of the Palestinians to return home is natural and legitimate - there is unanimity on it among Palestinians and unanimity on it among Lebanese," he said.
Mr Sultan Abul-Ainayn, the local leader of the Fateh faction of the Palestine President, Mr Yasser Arafat, characterised Mr Barak's comments as "a violation of the peace agreements" which "stipulate that the [refugee] issue be discussed in final status talks."
He called on Arab countries hosting Palestinian exiles to "meet and produce a mechanism that will get them back to their homes."
The official in charge of the refugee file in the Palestinian Authority, Dr Assad Abdel Rahman, admits that all may not choose to go home, but insists that they should have the right to return or receive compensation for their losses, which are in the process of being estimated by experts.
Meanwhile, two Damascusbased Palestinian groupings opposed to the peace process, the Popular Front General Command (a Syrian creation) and Islamic Ji had, have denied reports that Syria has told them to end their "armed struggle" against Israel.
In Lebanon, Hizbullah's secretary general, Mr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, denied that Syria had decreed a halt to operations. He said the struggle to liberate Israel's occupation zone would continue even if peace talks resume between Syria and Israel.
Mr Muhammad Raad, the head of the movement's politburo, stated that Syria wanted Hizbullah to maintain pressure in southern Lebanon on Israel as a "bargaining tool" in coming talks over the Golan Heights.
AFP adds:
Syria said yesterday it was not interfering in the affairs of Palestinian organisations based there, following reports that Damascus had asked the hardline groups to end their armed struggle against Israel.
"Syria does not interfere in the affairs of Palestinian organisations or their decisions concerning the rights of the Palestinian people," said a Syrian official quoted by the state news agency, SANA.
However, an Israeli army chief insisted that the Damascus government has reined in guerrillas battling Israeli occupation forces in Lebanon so their attacks will not undermine moves to resume Israeli-Syrian peace talks.
"Syria is preventing Hizbullah from firing Katyusha rockets into Israel," Gen Shaul Mofaz said during a meeting with new recruits in Tel Aviv.
Gen Mofaz said activities by Hizbullah, the Syrian-backed Islamic militia, had also fallen off inside Lebanon, where Israel occupies a buffer zone, since Mr Barak was elected Prime Minister in May and promised to renew peace negotiations with Syria.