Mizrahi Jews
The ma'abarot were meant to provide accommodation for the large influx of Jewish refugees and new Jewish immigrants ("olim") arriving to the newly independent State of Israel, replacing the less habitable immigrant camps or tent cities. In 1951 there was 127 Ma'abarot housing 250,000 Jews, of which 75% were Mizrahi Jews; 58% of Mizrahi Jews who had immigrated up to that point had been sent to Ma'abarot, compared to 18% of European Jews.