ADC Commemorates al-Nakba

From: ADC Media <media@adc.org>View Contact

To: Ambassador Syed Ahsani <syedahsani@sbcglobal.net>

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ADC Commemorates al-Nakba: 62 Years of Palestinian Dispossession (1948 - 2010)

On May 15, Palestinians across the world mourn al-Nakba, the destruction of hist
oric Palestine and the massive displacement of Palestinians by Israeli forces in
the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
Al-Nakba was not a singular event; displacement continues to this day affecting
thousands of Palestinians throughout the Middle East. There are approximately s
even million Palestinian refugees and 450,000 internally displaced persons, repr
esenting 70% of the entire Palestinian population worldwide (9.8 million).[i]
Internal displacement continues, unabated, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
(OPT). Thousands of Palestinians have been forcibly displaced as a result of th
e building of the wall, home demolition, and eviction orders. The threat of dis
placement hangs over those who remain.
Similar patterns of forced displacement are found in Israel, where urban develop
ment plans for the exclusive benefit of Jewish communities are displacing indige
nous Palestinian communities in places like Naqab (Negev) and Galilee.
More recently on March 9, 2010, the Netanyahu government approved the developmen
t of 1,600 new housing units in occupied East Jerusalem, a policy condemned by t
he U.S. This development will forcibly displace several families from their lan
d.
Palestinian refugees in host countries are also vulnerable to forced displacemen
t. For instance, as a result of the U.S. led invasion of Iraq, persecution has f
orced over half of the approximately 34,000 Palestinian refugees residing in Ira
q to leave the country. Additionally, over 31,000 people were displaced from Nah
r al-Bared camp in Lebanon in 2007, and most have not been able to return. Pale
stinians constitute the largest and most protracted refugee situation in the wor
ld.
Sixty three years after their initial forced displacement from their homeland, P
alestinian refugees and internally displaced persons still lack access to volunt
ary durable solutions and reparations -- which include return, restitution, and
compensation -- based on international law and UN resolutions.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) is mandated to provide assist
ance to 1948 Palestinian refugees, and on an emergency and temporary basis to196
7 Palestinian refugees and to those displaced as a result of subsequent hostilit
ies. UNRWA faces many difficulties in implementing its mandate due to funding s
hortages and armed conflicts in the region, in particular Israel's military occu
pation.
ADC is committed to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East. Any peaceful re
solution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict requires the following: The disman
tlement of the Israeli Wall which is being constructed through the illegal annex
ation of Palestinian lands; the cessation and dismantlement of settlements; an e
nd to the collective punishment imposed on the Palestinian population as a resul
t of Israeli occupation policies; the creation of a viable and independent Pales
tinian state; and the upholding of the right of return of the Palestinian refuge
es under international law. ADC will continue to advocate the rights of the Pale
stinian people to freedom, equality and self-determination in an independent and
fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

For more information visit www.badil.org and www.adc.org/organizing/2009-resolut

ions

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[i] Badil Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights
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Contact: media@adc.org
202-244-2990

NOTE TO EDITORS: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which is

non-profit, non-sectarian and non-partisan, is the largest Arab-American civil
rights organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980 by former Senat
or James Abourezk to protect the civil rights of people of Arab descent in the U
nited States and to promote the cultural heritage of the Arabs. ADC has 38 chapt
ers nationwide, including chapters in every major city in the country, and membe
rs in all 50 states.

The ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI), which was founded in 1981, is a Section 501
(c)(3) educational organization that sponsors a wide range of programs on behalf
of Arab Americans and of importance to all Americans. ADC-RI programs include r
esearch studies, seminars, conferences and publications that document and analyz
e the discrimination faced by Arab Americans in the workplace, schools, media, a
nd governmental agencies and institutions. ADC-RI also celebrates the rich cultu
ral heritage of the Arabs.

ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI) | www.adc.org

1732 Wisconsin Ave., NW | Washington, DC | 20007
Tel: 202-244-2990 | Fax: 202-333-3980 | E-mail: media@adc.org