麻豆APP

At a special event today marking the seventy-eighth anniversary of the Nakba, the 麻豆APP Palestinian Rights Committee heard testimonies from bereaved families and friends of victims — those killed during the events of 78?years ago, as well as in the ongoing conflict — including the mother of Hind Rajab, a five-year-old girl from Gaza,?who has become a symbol of innocent lives lost amidst violence and war.

“Nakba” — an Arabic word that means “catastrophe” — refers to the displacement and dispossession of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in?1948.? Today’s?meeting?— hosted by?the 麻豆APP Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People?— was mandated by General Assembly resolution?77/23?(2022), which requested the UN Secretariat to annually commemorate that historic event.

Much of the discussion drew a parallel between that tragedy and the ongoing violence and displacement in Gaza and the West Bank?— Palestine territories occupied by Israel.

‘Our Nakba Is Still Ongoing’: Grieving Mother of Hind Rajab

In February?2024, Hind and several of her relatives were attempting to flee fighting in the Tel al?Hawa area of Gaza City when their car was struck by gunfire from Israeli forces, killing most of them. ?Hind survived the initial attack, but was left trapped inside the vehicle among their bodies. ?During the incident, her cousin first contacted the Palestine Red Crescent Society for help.

After the cousin was killed, Hind continued speaking to rescuers herself; recordings captured her crying, frightened and pleading for assistance as gunfire continued nearby. ?Paramedics were eventually sent to rescue her, but the ambulance was also attacked and the medics were killed. ?Hind was later found dead in the vehicle 10?to 12?days later.

“My biggest joy was when Hind was born,” said her mother, Wesam Hamada, in a recorded testimony played at the meeting, describing her as a child with “a beautiful spirit” who “loved life and was far beyond her age”.

“I never truly felt that Hind was only five […] I felt she was 12 or 13” — a companion who shared her mother’s daily life and conversations, she added.

Hamada described the pain of losing not only her daughter, but also “my peace and all the joy” that left with her. ?She recounted the horror of hearing her child plead for help, asking: ?“Do you know what it feels like when your child begs you to save them from an Israeli tank or from the fear of death?”

She stated that Hind “was executed with 335?bullets” and emphasized that her tragedy is not isolated, but part of a wider reality faced by “tens of thousands of mothers in Gaza” whose suffering remains unheard.

Her testimony highlighted the conditions endured by children: ?fear, hunger and displacement. ?She asked the audience to imagine “what it means for your child to be hungry… and then fall asleep dreaming about food” or seeking safety “beneath your dress” during air strikes. ?She situated this within a continuing historical trauma, asserting: ?“Our Nakba is still ongoing.”

14-Year-Old Aws al-Na’san Carried Home ‘as a Martyr by His Friends’

In another recorded testimony, members of the family of Aws al?Na’san and his friends shared a personal account of loss and trauma.

Aws was a 14?year?old Palestinian schoolboy from the village of Al?Mughayyir in the occupied West Bank. On 21 April, armed settlers opened fire near his school during an attack on the village. ?He was shot and killed as students attempted to flee and teachers tried to protect them.

One of his sisters described the profound grief the family continues to endure: ?“He joined God, and joined my dad. ?He left us with immense pain that will never end. ?To have your father killed, and seven years later, have your brother killed. ?When we should have spent our childhood and adolescence together as a family; instead, we spent them experiencing loss and agony.”

She recalled that Aws was like any other child — only 14?years old — who went to school simply to learn, but, instead, “came back carried as a martyr by his friends”.? She said his memory remains ever-present in their lives: ?“I will never forget him. ?He will never leave my mind. ?His voice is still in that house… he was everything in my life. ?I love him so much.”

This Is Less Fire, Not Ceasefire; $71 Billion Needed to Rebuild Gaza

“For the Palestinian people, the Nakba is not a chapter closed in 1948,” said Coly Seck (Senegal), Palestinian Rights Committee Chair, noting: “It is not a memory confined to photographs, keys, deeds and stories passed from one generation to the next. ?It is a continuing catastrophe. ?[…] ?It continues in Gaza, where entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to dust.”

A recent assessment estimates direct physical damage at $35.2 billion, with reconstruction and recovery needs exceeding $71 billion. ?Palestinians in Gaza are told there is a ceasefire, yet with children still being killed, families displaced and aid obstructed, he stressed: ?“This is not a ceasefire — it is less fire.”

He said the Nakba continues because impunity continues. ?It will end only when unlawful occupation and displacement end and when the Palestinian people are free.? “Seventy-eight years is too long,” he said. ?“The Palestinian people have waited long enough for justice.? The world must not ask them to wait any longer.”

Recommit to New York Declaration, Don’t Lose Sight of Humanitarian Catastrophe

Annalena Baerbock (Germany), President of the General Assembly, urged Member States to recommit to the New York Declaration — the outcome of a high-level international conference on the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the implementation of the two-State solution held in?2025.

She also urged Member States to “not lose sight of what’s going on right now in Gaza”, where the humanitarian situation remains catastrophic, access limited, and demand high, and where close to 800?Palestinians, including many children, have been killed since the announcement of the so-called ceasefire in October?2025.

Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary?General for the Middle East, Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific at the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, described the Nakba as “the world’s longest?standing protracted refugee crisis” — one that remains painfully unresolved. “Remembering the Nakba imposes responsibilities — not only of remembrance, but of action,” he said.

Path Forward Rooted in International Law, United States 20-Point Plan

The path forward, he noted, is well-known and rooted in international law, relevant 麻豆APP resolutions, and the collective commitments of the international community.

These include ending unlawful practices, protecting civilians, supporting Palestinian governance and institution?building, and reviving a credible political process towards a negotiated two?State solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security. ?If implemented comprehensively, the 20-point United States plan to end the Gaza conflict — endorsed by UN Security Council resolution?2803?(2025) — could offer a pathway towards addressing these longstanding issues, he said.

Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine — in remarks delivered by Riyad H. Mansour, Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine — recalled that around 950,000?people were “forcibly and coercively expelled” from their homes, transformed into refugees amid efforts to “steal, falsify and erase their history and heritage”.? The events are also characterized by widespread violence, including massacres and the destruction of “more than 531?towns and villages” that were once vibrant communities.

He underscored the central role of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which has “led the Palestinian struggle in all its forms; popular, political, legal and diplomatic”, helping to preserve national identity and achieve milestones, such as recognition of Palestine as a UN non-member observer State.

He further emphasized recent diplomatic developments, welcoming “President Trump’s plan for a ceasefire” and resolution 2803 (2025), alongside the growing international recognition of Palestine — now by 160 States. ?These developments, he noted, represent meaningful steps towards implementing the two-State solution and realizing “an independent and sovereign Palestinian State with East Jerusalem as its capital”.

Importance of National Unity; One State, One Government, One Law, One Weapon?

Looking ahead, he stressed the importance of reconstruction and national unity, reaffirming a vision of “one State, one Government, one law and one weapon” and calling for a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. ?He described Gaza as an integral part of Palestine and emphasized the urgent need for rebuilding after “death, destruction, displacement and devastation”.

At the same time, he criticized Israel’s non-compliance with international law, noting that the UN has adopted “more than a thousand resolutions affirming the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people”, including resolutions?181 and?194, which he said Israel continues to disregard.

He affirmed that Palestinians “have the right to live in their homeland in freedom and dignity” and called on the international community to uphold these rights. ?He concluded by urging global recognition of the Nakba, warning that “nothing deepens tragedies more than denying them” and framing acknowledgment as essential to achieving justice and lasting peace.

Tribute to Palestinian Historian Walid Khalidi

The Committee also paid tribute to Walid Khalidi, a historian of Palestine and the Nakba.

Tarek Mitri, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Palestine Studies, said that Khalidi “wanted to present the truth in a convincing and coherent manner”, adding that 1948?was a dramatic year for the Palestinian people, the Middle East and the Arab world.? He stressed the importance of establishing exactly what had occurred and identifying those responsible.

The Committee also heard testimonies from Nakba survivors and remarks from Member States.

The Committee was established by the General Assembly in 1975 to promote and advocate for Palestinians’ rights to self-determination, statehood and return under international law.