and "Certificate of Eligibility" holders (the documents issued to those displaced by World War II) or like UNHCR refugees, inherit the same Palestine refugee status as their male parent. According to UNRWA, "The descendants of Palestine refugee males, including adopted children, are also eligible for registration." The UNHCR had counted 90,000 refugees by 2014. Palestinian definitions Palestinians make several distinctions relating to Palestinian refugees. The 1948 refugees and their descendants are broadly defined as "refugees" (laji'un). The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), especially those who have returned and form part of the PNA, but also Palestinian refugee camp residents in Lebanon, repudiate this term, since it implies being a passive victim, and prefer the autonym of 'returnees' (a'idun). Those who left since 1967, and their descendants, are called nazihun or "displaced persons", though many may also descend from the 1948 group. Origin of the Palestine refugees Most Palestinian refugees have retained their refugee status and continue to reside in refugee camps, including within the State of Palestine in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip. Their descendants form a sizable portion of the Palestinian diaspora. Palestinian refugees from the 1948 Palestine War During the 1948 Palestine War, some 700,000 Palestinian Arabs or 85% of the Palestinian Arab population of territories that became Israel fled or were expelled from their homes. Some 30,000 to 50,000 were alive by 2012. The causes and responsibilities of the exodus are a matter of controversy among historians and commentators of the conflict. While historians agree on most of the events of the period, there remains disagreement as to whether the exodus was the result of a plan designed before or during the war or was an unintended consequence of the war. According to historian Benny Morris, the expulsion was planned and encouraged by the Zionist leadership. According to Morris, between December 1947 and March 1948, around 100,000 Palestine Arabs fled. Among them were many from the higher and middle classes from the cities, who left voluntarily, expecting to return when the Arab states won the war and took control of the country. When the Haganah and then the emerging Israeli army (Israel Defense Forces or IDF) went on the defensive, between April and July, a further 250,000 to 300,000 Palestinian Arabs left or were expelled, mainly from the towns of Haifa, Tiberias, Beit-Shean, Safed, Jaffa and Acre, which lost more than 90 percent of their