The Nakba Never Ended

Every year on 15 May, Palestinians mark Nakba Day — the catastrophe. It is a day that remembers the more than 750,000 Palestinians violently displaced from their homes in 1948. Villages destroyed. Families separated. Lives uprooted forever.

But for Palestinians, the Nakba is not only history. It never ended.

For decades, Palestinians have lived under occupation, siege, forced displacement, military violence, illegal settlement expansion, and systematic discrimination. Entire generations have grown up without freedom or safety.

Today, the world is witnessing the ongoing Nakba in real time. In Gaza, civilians continue to suffer devastating violence. Families search through rubble for loved ones. Hospitals struggle to function. Journalists, medical workers, and children are among those killed. Even as parts of the Western media move on, Palestinians are still living this reality every day.

Beyond Gaza, violence against Palestinians across the West Bank continues to intensify. Illegal Israeli settler attacks, land theft, home demolitions, and forced displacement are increasing. 

Many human rights organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have described this system as apartheid. And still, much of the world watches.

Yet Palestinians continue to resist erasure through culture, community, and creativity.

At Handmade Palestine, we believe preserving Palestinian craft is an act of resistance. Every tatreez pattern, olive wood carving, ceramic, and textile carries generations of history, identity, and resilience. Support Palestinians by buying their authentic and handcrafted wares. You can find products on our website here. 

The Nakba sought to erase Palestinian existence. Palestinians continue to say: we are still here. Nakba Day is not only about mourning. It is about refusing silence.

No child should grow up under constant and tortuous bombardment, nor lose entire family members. No Palestinian child nor civilian should be purposely targeted. No family should fear displacement. No people should spend generations fighting simply to live freely in their homeland. Nor see their family homes destroyed in front of their eyes.

This Nakba Day, we remember the past while confronting the present.

Because the Nakba never ended.