{"id":318171,"date":"2026-05-15T14:40:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T18:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?p=318171"},"modified":"2026-05-23T14:54:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T18:54:50","slug":"428th-committee-meeting-nakba78-15may2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/428th-committee-meeting-nakba78-15may2026\/","title":{"rendered":"428th Committee Meeting: Commemoration of the 78th anniversary of the Nakba \u2013 15 May 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 15 May 2026, the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People convened a special meeting at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Headquarters in New York to commemorate the 78th anniversary of the Nakba<\/a>. The meeting opened with a solemn reminder that the Nakba is not only a historical event, but an ongoing reality for Palestinians. In the Committee Chair\u2019s statement<\/a>, the Nakba was described as \u201cthe catastrophe of dispossession, exile and loss,\u201d and as \u201cnot a chapter closed in 1948,\u201d but \u201ca continuing catastrophe\u201d visible in refugee camps, checkpoints, demolished homes, uprooted olive trees, and in Gaza, \u201cwhere entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to dust.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speakers drew urgent attention to the devastation in Gaza and the worsening situation across the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The Chair noted that families in Gaza who survived bombardment now face hunger, disease, displacement, and the daily struggle to find water, medicine, and shelter. He challenged the meaning of a ceasefire that leaves civilians unsafe, saying, \u201cThis is not a ceasefire. It is less fire. And less fire is not peace.\u201d The meeting emphasized that peace must mean safety, dignity, the right to rebuild, the right to return, and the right of the Palestinian people to determine their own future.<\/p>\n

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The commemoration featured deeply moving testimonies from Palestinians whose lives reflect the enduring human cost of the Nakba and its present-day manifestations. The mother of Hind Rajab, the five-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza in 2024, shared her grief and asked the world not to forget Gaza\u2019s children, saying they \u201cdeserve life, education, and they deserve a far better life than this.\u201d Another testimony recounted the killing of a Palestinian child in the West Bank by settlers, underscoring the continuing impact of violence, loss, and fear on Palestinian families. Survivors of the 1948 Nakba also recalled displacement, destroyed homes, and the enduring longing to return, with one survivor saying, \u201cPalestine is my soul. It is all I dream and think about.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The meeting also included remarks by senior Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ officials, representatives of the State of Palestine, regional groups, and Member States. Speakers reaffirmed support for Palestinian self-determination, the right of return, accountability under international law, and an end to occupation. The statement delivered on behalf of President Mahmoud Abbas<\/a> declared, \u201cWe will not leave and we will not forget,\u201d and stressed that the Palestinian people\u2019s rights to self-determination, independence, return, and sovereignty cannot be erased. Many delegations reiterated support for a two-State solution based on the pre-1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine, and called for Palestine\u2019s full membership in the United Nations.<\/p>\n

Throughout the commemoration, speakers framed the Nakba as a question of justice, memory, and international responsibility. The event honored Palestinian resilience across generations while calling for concrete action to end displacement, protect civilians, ensure humanitarian access, uphold international law, and achieve a just and lasting peace. As the Committee Chair concluded, \u201cSilence and indifference can never be an option in the face of such human suffering.\u201d The message of the day was clear: \u201c78 years is too long,\u201d and the Palestinian people \u201chave waited long enough for justice.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Programme of the event<\/strong><\/p>\n

Opening\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

H.E. Mr. Coly Seck<\/strong>\u00a0Chair, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Palestinian Rights Committee; Permanent Representative of Senegal<\/a><\/p>\n

Statements by <\/strong><\/p>\n