Ladies and Gentlemen,<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
78 years ago, the Palestinian people endured the Nakba, the catastrophe of dispossession, exile and loss.<\/p>\n
For the Palestinian people, the Nakba is not a chapter closed in 1948.<\/p>\n
It is not a memory confined to photographs, keys, deeds and stories passed from one generation to the next.<\/p>\n
It is a continuing catastrophe.<\/p>\n
It continues in the refugee camp.<\/p>\n
It continues at the checkpoint.<\/p>\n
It continues in the demolished home.<\/p>\n
It continues in the uprooted olive tree and the lost orange groves.<\/p>\n
It continues in Gaza, where entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to dust.<\/p>\n
This year, we mark the Nakba while Gaza lies in ruins.<\/p>\n
Families who survived bombardment now face hunger, disease, displacement and the daily struggle to find water, medicine and shelter.<\/p>\n
A recent assessment estimated direct physical damage in Gaza at 35.2 billion US dollars, with reconstruction and recovery needs exceeding 71 billion dollars.<\/p>\n
These figures are staggering.<\/p>\n
But behind every figure is a home.<\/p>\n
A school.<\/p>\n
A hospital.<\/p>\n
A life interrupted.<\/p>\n
A future deferred.<\/p>\n
And even now, Palestinians in Gaza are told there is a ceasefire.<\/p>\n
But what kind of ceasefire leaves children killed, families displaced, aid obstructed, and whole areas beyond reach?<\/p>\n
This is not a CEASEFIRE. It is LESS FIRE.<\/strong><\/p>\nAnd less fire is not peace.<\/strong><\/p>\nPeace cannot be measured by the reduction of explosions alone.<\/p>\n
Peace means safety.<\/p>\n
Peace means dignity.<\/p>\n
Peace means the right of a people to live, to rebuild, to return, and to determine their own future.<\/p>\n
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