A number of events are taking place around the country to mark the Palestinian Nakba or “catastrophe” commemorating the dispossession of Palestinians during Israel’s War of Independence and the creation of the Jewish state in 1948.
Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint List of Arab Knesset factions, strikes a conciliatory tone in comments to mark the day, which brought some 200 people to a commemoration event at Tel Aviv University, often the scene of heated tensions.
Arab Israeli and left wing student activists hold a memorial service during a rally marking the Nakba anniversary at the Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv on May 15, 2016. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
“It’s so important to hold these events, esepcially in Tel Aviv and other places with a Jewish majority. Everyone here believes in two states for two peoples. Nobody wants to question the creation of the State of Israel, but just to recognize the injustice done to the Palestinian people,” he tells Channel 2 news. “I understand Israelis’ reluctance. It’s a process, it takes time.”
Ayman Odeh at a memorial service during a rally marking the Nakba anniversary at Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv on May 15, 2016. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
According to Channel 10, Odeh makes similar comments at another Nakba Day event:
“The Nakba isn’t just history but also the possibility of a shared future. Only after the recognition of the crimes of the past will we be able to build a shared society.”
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From the Liveblog of
Sunday, May 15, 2016
