70 Years of Nakba: Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return, Stand Up for Gaza, Stop the Killing
Join PSC as we mark 70 years of Nakba with a series of events beginning on May 11th.
Between 1947 and 1949, Zionist paramilitary forces ethnically cleansed and eradicated over 500 villages and cities in Palestine, displacing 750,000 Palestinians and taking over 78% of the land. Palestinians call this process the ‘Nakba’, or catastrophe.
Today, over 7 million Palestinian refugees are scattered around the world, many of whom live in refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.
These refugees are denied their right of return by Israel; a right demanded by tens of thousands of Palestinians protesting in Gaza over the last four weeks. To date, 40 protesters at the ‘Great March of Return’ have been killed inside Gaza by Israeli snipers, including journalists and children. A further 5,500 protesters have been injured; over a third with live ammunition.
This treatment of Palestinian civilians is not exceptional; the Nakba did not end in 1948.
Israel routinely uses lethal violence against Palestinian civilians; demolishes Palestinian homes and villages; imposes apartheid policies upon Palestinians in Israel and the occupied territories; colonises Palestinian land through unlawful settlement building; and imprisons both adults and children in a military detention system notorious for torture and ill-treatment.
In May of every year, Palestinians and people of conscience around the world come together in recognition of this ongoing catastrophe. We invite you to join us at three key events as we mark 70 years of Nakba, and call for justice, equality and the right of return.
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MAY 11 | National demonstration | 70 Years of Nakba – Stand up for Gaza – Stop the Killing
Join our protest in solidarity with Palestine after 70 Years of Nakba and with the Great March of Return, calling for justice, equality and the implementation of the right of return.
5.30pm to 7pm, Opposite the Israeli Embassy, London
Closest Underground: High Street Kensington
Organised by: Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Palestinian Forum in Britain, Olive
Supported by: Muslim Association of Britain, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Stop the War Coalition, EuroPal Forum
MAY 20 |PSC Conference- @70: Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return
The conference aims to provide the tools and education necessary for activists in the UK to continue to campaign for the right of return of Palestinian refugees, as enshrined in international law. Thus the conference will include sessions on international law, the historical background of the displacement of Palestinians, the experiences of refugees and the various discourses encompassing the right of return. Speakers include Dr Ghada Karmi, Hazem Jamjoum, Dr Ruba Salih, Eitan Bronstein, Amjad Iraqi, Mohamad Fahed, Sarona Bedwan, Tareq Baconi, and PSC Director Ben Jamal.
MAY 14-20 |@70: Celebration of Contemporary Palestinian Culture
This week-long festival of theatre, dance, films and talks commemorates the Palestinian experience of dispossession and loss of a homeland. This exceptional and unique series of events is coordinated by three artists from Gaza – Ahmed Masoud, Ahmed Najar and Khalid Ziyada, working closely with Amnesty International UK, the Hoping Foundation, Amos Trust, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and Al Zaytouna Dance Theatre to bring together this creative response to decades of injustice.
Tickets are available here.
