Published by the Handala Association – Belgium
May 15, 2025 marks the 77th anniversary of the Nakba of the Palestinian people—one of the largest campaigns of ethnic cleansing and forced displacement in modern history. In 1948, Zionist militias took control of approximately 78% of historic Palestine, killed thousands of Palestinians, expelled nearly 900,000 people from their towns and villages, and destroyed over 500 Palestinian villages. This catastrophe did not end in 1948: it has continued for 77 years through assassinations, land confiscations, forced displacement, and the ongoing expansion of settlements across Palestinian territory.
This 77th commemoration comes at a time when the suffering of the Palestinian people has reached unprecedented levels, especially in the Gaza Strip, which has been subjected for over a year and a half to a genocidal war. This offensive has killed more than 50,000 people, wounded tens of thousands, and systematically destroyed essential infrastructure, including healthcare, education, and cultural institutions—in a climate of shameful international silence and active western complicity with the colonial and occupying regime.
As the Handala Association – Belgium, and on the occasion of this painful commemoration, we affirm the following:
First: The genocide happening in Gaza since October 2023 is a direct continuation of the 1948 Nakba, and an ongoing manifestation of the colonial settler project aimed at uprooting Palestinians and denying their fundamental rights.
Second: There can be no justice without a complete end to the occupation, the establishment of an independent Palestinian state across the entire national territory with Jerusalem as its capital, and the return of refugees to their original homes, in accordance with United Nations Resolution 194.
Third: The international community, and especially the countries of the European Union, must assume their legal and moral responsibilities, end double standards, end their complicity and stop granting impunity to the occupying state.
Therefore, we call for:
Official recognition by the Kingdom of Belgium of the Nakba as an act of systematic ethnic cleansing, with all its political, legal, and humanitarian implications, and support for efforts to deliver justice to the Palestinian people.
Urgent international protection for the Palestinian people, and call for an immediate end to the aggression against Gaza, unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid, and a complete halt to settlement expansion in the West Bank.
Support for international legal efforts to prosecute Israeli war criminals before the International Criminal Court, and to bring those responsible for crimes against civilians—including women and children—to justice.
Severance of all relations with the Israeli occupying state, including in military, economic, and academic sectors, and the imposition of comprehensive sanctions on its leaders and institutions involved in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Support for the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to resist the occupation, a right recognized under international law and human rights conventions.
The Nakba is not an event of the past, but a continuing tragedy. The silence of the international community in the face of this injustice is a form of complicity.
On this day of commemoration, the Handala Association – Belgium renews its commitment to remain a voice for justice and to defend the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people until freedom, dignity, and return are achieved.
We call on the Palestinian and Arab communities, as well as all people of conscience in Belgium and Europe, to raise their voices, participate in popular actions, and engage in civil and legal struggle in solidarity with Palestine and for the right of its people to self-determination.
Handala Association – Belgium
May 15, 2025
