Nakba Demonstrators Breach Gaza Buffer Zone

Thousands of Palestinians briefly entered the buffer zone between Gaza and the border fence with Israel as part of a Nakba Day demonstration, The Times of Israel reported on Sunday.

Nakba is the term used by Palestinians to refer to what they consider to be the “catastrophe” of the creation of the state of Israel in 1948.

As the demonstrators approached the fence near Nahal Oz, in the north of the Strip, the army dispatched forces to the site. But the Palestinians dispersed without any violence.

The incident passed “without a single shot being fired or other riot dispersal method used,” the IDF spokesperson said.

Also on Sunday, about two hundred Jews and Arabs attended a Nakba ceremony at Tel Aviv University. As in the past, it was held in front of the main entrance to the university rather than on the campus itself.

The event was attended by members of the Joint (Arab) List, including party leader MK Ayman Odeh, MK Hanin Zoabi, MK Dov Khenin and MK Jamal Zahalka.

“The Nakba is our catastrophe: 531 villages were destroyed and whole families lost their entire worlds,” Odeh said during the event.

A small counter-demonstration was held by the right-wing Im Tirtzu organization. They waved Israeli flags, held up signs that said “Nakba Day equals day of lies,” and set up a 15-foot-tall inflatable Pinocchio nearby – “to emphasize the lie of the Nakba,” a statement from Im Tirztu said.