BICOM

Israeli Arabs marked the 70th anniversary of the state with a protest in support of the right of return for Palestinian refugees.

The march, known as the “Procession of Return,” was organised by the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel, which is headed by former MK Mohammad Barakeh. It commemorates Palestinians who fled their homes in Israel during the 1948 War of Independence. This year it was held in the northern town of Atlit, a small coastal village south of Haifa where the organisers said a small Arab village used to be before it was abandoned in 1948.

“What happened then was a catastrophe — a humanitarian and national disaster by any measure,” said Arab Joint List Knesset member Ahmad Tibi.“Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian citizens until today live near the communities from which they were uprooted. What is more natural, humanitarian and just, than returning them to their homes in their abandoned communities, and returning their stolen property to them,” he adds.

Yousef Jabareen from the Arab Joint List was also present at the demonstration. He said: “We continue to preserve the Palestinian narrative and the memories generation after generation until this right, which is recognised by all international conventions and treaties, is executed and our people return to their homes.

The Defence Ministry said yesterday that a “powerful” explosive device was found in a Palestinian truck at a West Bank checkpoint on Wednesday. The bomb was found after the driver was stopped for a routine check at the Rehian crossing between the northern West Bank and Israel. The vehicle also carried goods to Israeli settlements in the area, according to the Ministry.

Nakba Day is observed annually by Palestinians and Israeli-Arabs to commemorate the events following the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Nakba Day is marked on 15 May, the day after the Western calendar date for Israel’s independence. Israel celebrates its Independence Day according to the Hebrew calendar.