- ‘Our message is clear: We will not leave, and we will remain on our land no matter the cost,’ official said
Israel’s two-year war on Gaza and illegal settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank represent a continuation of the Nakba, a senior Palestinian official said Thursday, as Palestinians mark the 78th anniversary of Israel’s creation on the rubble of their villages.
Ahmad Abu Holi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)’s Executive Committee, told Anadolu that Palestinians mark the anniversary this year “amid an ongoing Nakba with renewed tools.”
Abu Holi, who heads the PLO’s Department of Refugee Affairs, said the current escalation “is not a separate event, but a direct extension of a non-stop project aimed at uprooting and displacing Palestinians.”
“What is happening in Gaza is a genocidal war aimed at destroying the Palestinian people,” he said. “Illegal settlement expansion, settler attacks and restrictions in the West Bank and East Jerusalem also show that we are still at the heart of the Nakba.”
Palestinians use the term Nakba, or catastrophe in Arabic, to refer to the displacement of about 800,000 Palestinians in 1948 as Israel was established on Palestinian land.
According to official figures, more than 154,000 Palestinians have been killed since then, while about 1 million Palestinians have been arrested since 1967.
Palestinians mark the anniversary every year through activities in the Palestinian territories and the diaspora to reaffirm their commitment to the right of return.
Model of steadfastness
Abu Holi said the Palestinian people remain committed to their land and rights despite the passage of 78 years since the Nakba.
“Our people have proven over these decades that they cannot be broken, despite all impossible conditions, including starvation, thirst, deprivation of education and systematic attacks,” he said.
“Those people present a model of steadfastness. They remain on their land, hold on to their constants, and carry the key of return as a symbol of a right that does not expire,” he added.
The PLO official criticized the failure of the international community to Israeli assaults against the Palestinians.
“The world today is watching the ongoing genocidal war and ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank and the targeting of refugee camps, and standing by as a spectator,” he said.
He said this silence “encourages the continuation of violations instead of deterring them,” calling on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities.
Abu Holi warned that the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) is facing attempts to dismantle it.
“Today, UNRWA is being targeted through a financial crisis and political pressure, even though it provides services to about 6 million refugees and is the true witness to the crime of the Nakba,” he said.
He called for support for the UN agency to ensure it continues to provide its services to refugees.
At the end of 2024, Israel banned the UNRWA operations in occupied East Jerusalem and imposed pressure and strict restrictions on the agency, alleging links to Hamas, an accusation denied by UNRWA and the United Nations.
During that period, some donor countries suspended financial support for the agency, pushing UNRWA into a severe financial crisis because its budget depends heavily on voluntary contributions.
UNRWA was established in 1949 by a UN General Assembly resolution and was mandated to provide assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees in its five areas of operation: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Right to return
Abu Holi said refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon are being targeted by Israel “because they are a symbol of the right to return.”
The goal is to “create a repelling environment that pushes the refugees to migrate,” he said.
“When infrastructure is destroyed and services are prevented, the goal is to make life impossible. But despite that, our people insist on staying,” he added.
Abu Holi reaffirmed the Palestinian leadership’s commitment to the two-state solution.
“We call on the international community to recognize the State of Palestine and implement the two-state solution, in a way that guarantees the establishment of an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital,” he said.
He also stressed the need to implement UN Resolution 194, issued in 1948, regarding the right to return for refugees, including compensation.
“Our message is clear: We will not leave, and we will remain on our land no matter the cost, because this land is our identity and our future,” he said.
“This anniversary is not only a remembrance of the past, but an affirmation of the continuation of the struggle until our people achieve justice and freedom,” Abu Holi added.
Since the start of Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, the Palestinian territories have seen unprecedented escalation. The Israeli war in Gaza has killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, wounded more than 172,000, caused massive destruction to infrastructure, homes and vital facilities, and created a severe humanitarian crisis amid a crippling blockade and severe shortages of food, water and medicine.
Despite a ceasefire agreement that took effect on Oct. 10, Israel has continued daily strikes and restrictions on humanitarian aid entering Gaza, according to Palestinian officials.
In parallel, the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has seen an escalation in Israeli military operations, including raids, arrests, shootings and excessive use of force, alongside rising occupier attacks on Palestinians and their property.
Since October 2023, attacks by the Israeli army and occupiers have killed 1,155 Palestinians, wounded about 11,750 and led to the arrest of nearly 22,000, according to official Palestinian figures.
*Writing by Lina Altawell in Istanbul
