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Seven decades since the Nakba: Seven stories from Syria

23 May 2018

70 years ago, Palestine refugees were forced to leave their homes. Thousands fled to neighbouring countries, including Syria. Multiple generations have grown up outside of Palestine, yet all cherish memories of a homeland that most have never visited. Many Palestine refugees have been displaced more than once, before settling in Jaramana camp in Syria. Some have been displaced to the camp by the fighting in Yarmouk. But all share the dream of returning to their homeland.

Abdel Aziz al Khatib, 70 was born the year of the Nakba. “I fled with my family. We were displaced half a dozen times. To me, al Nakba means the displacement of the Palestinian people from their homeland and their homes. I was displaced from my homeland and took refuge in Syria. The pain and sorrow al Nakba brought about affected my family and two children. My hope is to go back to Palestine and to see my country be free and independent.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriGhina Mohammed, 10 years-old is from Salhieh village in Palestine. Her grandparents told her about the events of 1948. “My grandfather and grandmother told me that they were displaced. They slept on the ground in a tent. They would get wet when it rained. And they were hungry.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriMusa Ali Abu al Ra’ed, 52 years-old did not live through it, but al Nakba has many meanings for him. “It means pain, suffering. We didn’t suffer the way our parents suffered, but we have still suffered from the consequences of al Nakba,” he says. “I remember when we were kids. We used to live in one room,” he says. © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriThat experience is shared today by Mohammed Abu Bakr, 25 years-old originally from Haifa in Palestine. “As a Palestine refugee I have gone through a different kind of Nakba in Yarmouk camp. We fled together with five families and took refuge in a house with just one room.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriHayat Saleh Mousa, 51 years-old was born almost twenty years after al Nakba, but the memory was kept alive by her relatives. “Through this, we felt like we experienced it ourselves. They told us how they were displaced. Some people fled to Syria, others to other places. During the Syrian crisis people were displaced again and went through the same experiences as our people in Palestine did.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriFeryal Abou Kharoub works actively to keep the memory of Palestine alive in her pupils at the UNRWA kindergarten where she volunteers. “Palestine lives inside me, inside my soul. I feel that I should nurture the love of the homeland in all the children that I teach. You shouldn’t love your homeland through violence; you have to love your homeland by learning about its geography and what fruits grow there and the heritage, as well as about the struggle of your people.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad FaouriAbu Ali Jaber, 56 years-old hails from al-Naimeh village, which has come alive through stories from his father. “From his stories, from the stories he used to tell us about Palestine, he instilled his love for Palestine in us. This love led me to research Palestinian heritage, to be able to pass on this love and adoration for Palestine to the next generation, until we are able to return to Palestine. This is our first, last and greatest hope.” © 2018 UNRWA Photo by Iyad Faouri

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