RAMALLAH, July 13: Dozens of furious Palestinian refugees wrecked a local pollster’s office on Sunday to stop him releasing a survey showing most Palestinian refugees were ready to abandon claims to return to what is today Israel.

Dozens of refugees pelted Palestinian academic Khalil Shikaki with eggs when they burst into his office, overturning tables and smashing windows, moments before he was to release the results of his controversial survey on Palestinian refugees.

Shikaki, whose think-tank monitors the Palestinian political pulse through periodic surveys, found that “the vast majority” of refugees were willing to accept monetary compensation in lieu of a return to homes and land they abandoned or were forced to flee when Israel was established in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.—Reuters