Nakba 75 - Personal Perspectives: “Will the world ever take action to help us?”
The 15th May 2023 will mark 75 years since Israel became an independent state, the realisation of a dream of many for a homeland where Jewish people could feel safe, but also an event Palestinians remember as the Nakba (Catastrophe).
We asked our Palestinian partners to reflect on what this 75th anniversary means to them. We are sharing their responses in this blog series: Nakba 75 - Personal Perspectives.
Our response today comes from Boulos, who was forced to flee Palestine with his family as a young boy in 1948 and now lives in the Dbayeh Palestinian Refugee Camp in Lebanon:
WILL THE WORLD EVER TAKE ACTION TO HELP US?
WHAT DOES 15th MAY 2023 MEAN TO YOU?
15th May reminds us Palestinians every year of the Israeli occupation of our homeland.
The agony that has been inflicted upon the Palestinian people, including myself and my family, is an unspeakable tragedy; it is a flagrant violation of the simplest rules of human rights. We, Palestinians, like other people in the world, deserve to live in safety and security. Yet we have been thrown out of our homes and land. We’re living in camps, our people scattered all over the world.
For 75 long and painful years, I have watched with other Palestinians around me in the camp, the daily onslaught of violence and oppression of innocent men, women, and children who have remained in Palestine and try to live in peace with the new occupiers. But many are being killed and their homes demolished while the world is silent, except for a few voices.
HOW DOES WHAT HAPPENED IN 1948 IMPACT YOUR LIFE TODAY?
The events that took place in 1948 have inflicted on me an enduring wound that will always throb with pain and anguish. I live in a camp and I have worked all my life to be recognized as a Palestinian with needs and rights. The countries where we live must recognise the fact that we, who have lost our country, have the right to live in dignity while dreaming of the UN resolution of 194 which is the “Right of Return”.
My life is impacted with the longing to see my country, Palestine, attaining the same stability and security that other nations take for granted. I dream that we will, at least, be allowed to go and visit the land of our ancestors. Unfortunately, I think this dream will forever remain out of reach, a distant mirage that I can only hope that one day my children will attain.
WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES AND FEARS FOR THE FUTURE?
My heart is heavy with the hope that the nations who hold the key to help my people attain justice will hear our cries and stand with us in our struggle. I seek nothing more than to reclaim our rightful place in our own country and land, to live in peace and safety once more. But the fear that grips us is all-encompassing, for the occupiers who have stolen our homes and our future show no signs of relenting. Time and again, they flout the very laws that were meant to protect us, unleashing their fury on our innocent people in Palestine. The world looks on, but the UN and Western powers stand by their decision to support Israel, turning a blind eye to the suffering of a people who have already endured a great deal. We have done nothing to deserve this torment, yet it continues unabated. We are left to wonder; will justice ever be served? Will the world ever see the value of our lives, and take action to help us?
The story of Boulos is all too familiar to the Palestinian people. It is a tale of loss and displacement that has echoed through the generations. He was born in Al Bassa, Akka, Palestine in 1938, and was just a boy of eleven when his family was forced to flee their beloved home country, leaving everything behind to escape the violence. They sought refuge in the Lebanese southern town of Alma, but the Lebanese security forces soon demanded that all Palestinians move away from the border, as the Israelis were closing in. And so, once again, Boulos and his family were forced to uproot themselves to different locations in the south, moving first to the Al Bass area and then to the Al Rashidiya area. It was a difficult life, but they made the best of it, hoping that one day they would be able to return to their homeland. But that hope was soon to be dashed, for in 1953, they were informed that Christian Palestinians were gathering to the north, in the Dbayeh area. The UNRWA began building tents there, and that is where Boulos and his family have been living ever since. Their lives have been marked by hardship and struggle, but through it all they have held fast to their dreams, hoping that one day they will be able to return to their land.
*All views expressed above those of the respondent, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Embrace the Middle East.
Between 1947-49 over 530 Palestinian towns and villages were destroyed and millions of families fled their homes. These families expected to return but very few ever did. There are currently over 5.9 million Palestinian refugees registered with UNWRA.
The desire of Jewish communities, who had been persecuted for centuries and experienced immeasurable suffering in the 20th Century, to secure for themselves and their children a safe and free future must be remembered. The achievement of this goal should be celebrated. Nevertheless, the Balfour Declaration stated that in achieving the aspirations of the Jewish community, “nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish Communities in Palestine”. This week we remember the failure to realise that part of the declaration.
These testimonies give us hope that a future built upon dignity, rights and justice is possible, although the journey will not be smooth.
Please pray for the resilience, creativity and capacity for hope for these inspiring individuals and all of our partners across the Holy Land. Their desires for their children’s safety and freedom echo in history. Our hope and prayers are for a future where all peoples of the Holy Land can live in safety and freedom.