Millions of Palestinians are commemorating the 78th anniversary of the Nakba, meaning “catastrophe” in Arabic, which marks the mass displacement of an estimated 750,000 Palestinians during the 1948 war that led to the creation of the state of Israel.
The anniversary, observed on Friday, comes amid ongoing devastation in Gaza and is the third Nakba remembrance since the latest war in the enclave began. It also coincides with a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where more than two million Palestinians remain displaced and confined to increasingly limited areas of the territory.
According to historical accounts, the Nakba took place between 1947 and 1949, when hundreds of Palestinian towns and villages were depopulated or destroyed during the conflict. Many of those displaced fled or were expelled as Zionist paramilitary groups captured territory that later became Israel. More than 400 villages and urban communities were affected.
Today, descendants of those refugees continue to live in crowded camps across the occupied West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Many still preserve keys, property deeds, and documents from homes their families lost, treating them as powerful symbols of identity and a hoped-for return.
Palestinian refugees continue to insist on their internationally recognised “right of return”, a principle outlined in United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194, which remains one of the most contentious issues in stalled peace negotiations.
As commemorations continue, many Palestinians say the ongoing war in Gaza reinforces their belief that displacement is not only a historical event but a continuing reality. Activists describe the anniversary as both a moment of remembrance and a renewed call for justice, return, and self-determination.
