Memories Never Die
By Sara Ibrahim
To commemorate the mourning of the 62th year of the Nakba, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were expelled from their homes and land in 1948, PLF Palestinian Liberation Front organized an exhibition in Majd El Kurum Hall in Sabra Chatila Camp, Beirut.
The exhibition held pictures of the villages that were depopulated and completely destroyed during the Nakba, as well as the Palestinians that were Martyred and injured during that time.
Walid Jomaa, Palestinian Liberation Front leader said that the exhibition is a memorial of all the tyranny and aggression that the Palestinian people went and are still going through. "The Nakba in fact occurred when the First Zionist Congress was held in Basel in 1897 when the Jewish state was founded, knowing that the state shall be formed on a land without people, for people without a land", he added.
"Our struggle with "Israel" is a struggle of existence and not a struggle of geographical limits and that's what lead us to the political split in the Palestinian regime", he said. Walid added that the option of negotiation brought nothing to our people but misery and destruction starting from the first experience 17 years ago during Oslo agreements year 1993 and that the only option that will liberate Palestine is the option of Resistance.
"The Resistance will keep on rising and growing till the liberation of Palestine as a whole from the sea to the river", he said. He continued that the Two state resolution is totally rejected and it will never be a choice, for it diminishes the right of return!
Since the elderly posses better memories than the Youth, Mohammad Omar Deeb, an 80 year old Palestinian was present to tell us more about his bitter and sweet memories in his beloved land.
Mohammad is a father of 10 kids, 4 boys and 6 girls, his eldest is 55 years old and his youngest is 12. He came back from the hospital 4 hours ago after staying there for 4 days, he couldn't but pull himself together and attend the exhibition. " When I heard about the photo exhibition I cried, every picture took me back to a past that I miss painfully", he cried.
"I still remember every corner in Palestine, the color of the fields, the smell of it's precious ground, the warmth of it's people. They may kill my people, kill the land, but they'll never kill the memories", he said.
Mohammad added that he can still remember when his village El Berwe was attacked. "It was 8:00 p.m and the Jews attacked our village, and our farmers were defending the land, at 12:00 p.m rescue teams arrived and told us to evacuate the village promising us to give it back in the morning. At 2:00 a.m they rescue team handed in the village to the Zionists", he said.
He continued that his people were scattered in different villages around Palestine, they stayed there until Palestine collapsed, when Al- Jaleel went down, 56 villages were put down in one day.
" A Turkish General came on that day and held a gathering and told us that we had two choices either we leave or stay, most of the people left including me, but my parents stayed", he said.
"The last time I saw my parents was in 1997 when I went to Palestine through the Red Cross, I stayed there for 15 days and than I came back and I haven't had the chance to see them since", he sighed.
Mohammed added that he blames the Arabs for what happened to Palestine. "We were scattered here and there, because of the Arabs, they opened their borders for us, never were we allowed to enter the Arab countries without Visas, but at that time, the Arabs made an agreement with the Americans that they would let us in without Visas", he said.
"The struggle among the Arab countries lead us here, they never supported us, they were never united to protect us", he said.
Mohammad ended saying, " Salah Eddine el Ayyoubi was able to liberate Al Quds in 1187 AD, we definitely need another Salah Eddine".
Maysaa and Ghida, Mohammad's youngest two girls were listening to their father with great admiration. They approached and kissed him and one of them said, "Father we are going back to Palestine soon, don't worry God promised us victory is ours".
To commemorate the mourning of the 62th year of the Nakba, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were expelled from their homes and land in 1948, PLF Palestinian Liberation Front organized an exhibition in Majd El Kurum Hall in Sabra Chatila Camp, Beirut.
The exhibition held pictures of the villages that were depopulated and completely destroyed during the Nakba, as well as the Palestinians that were Martyred and injured during that time.
Walid Jomaa, Palestinian Liberation Front leader said that the exhibition is a memorial of all the tyranny and aggression that the Palestinian people went and are still going through. "The Nakba in fact occurred when the First Zionist Congress was held in Basel in 1897 when the Jewish state was founded, knowing that the state shall be formed on a land without people, for people without a land", he added.
"Our struggle with "Israel" is a struggle of existence and not a struggle of geographical limits and that's what lead us to the political split in the Palestinian regime", he said. Walid added that the option of negotiation brought nothing to our people but misery and destruction starting from the first experience 17 years ago during Oslo agreements year 1993 and that the only option that will liberate Palestine is the option of Resistance.
"The Resistance will keep on rising and growing till the liberation of Palestine as a whole from the sea to the river", he said. He continued that the Two state resolution is totally rejected and it will never be a choice, for it diminishes the right of return!
Since the elderly posses better memories than the Youth, Mohammad Omar Deeb, an 80 year old Palestinian was present to tell us more about his bitter and sweet memories in his beloved land.
Mohammad is a father of 10 kids, 4 boys and 6 girls, his eldest is 55 years old and his youngest is 12. He came back from the hospital 4 hours ago after staying there for 4 days, he couldn't but pull himself together and attend the exhibition. " When I heard about the photo exhibition I cried, every picture took me back to a past that I miss painfully", he cried.
"I still remember every corner in Palestine, the color of the fields, the smell of it's precious ground, the warmth of it's people. They may kill my people, kill the land, but they'll never kill the memories", he said.
Mohammad added that he can still remember when his village El Berwe was attacked. "It was 8:00 p.m and the Jews attacked our village, and our farmers were defending the land, at 12:00 p.m rescue teams arrived and told us to evacuate the village promising us to give it back in the morning. At 2:00 a.m they rescue team handed in the village to the Zionists", he said.
He continued that his people were scattered in different villages around Palestine, they stayed there until Palestine collapsed, when Al- Jaleel went down, 56 villages were put down in one day.
" A Turkish General came on that day and held a gathering and told us that we had two choices either we leave or stay, most of the people left including me, but my parents stayed", he said.
"The last time I saw my parents was in 1997 when I went to Palestine through the Red Cross, I stayed there for 15 days and than I came back and I haven't had the chance to see them since", he sighed.
Mohammed added that he blames the Arabs for what happened to Palestine. "We were scattered here and there, because of the Arabs, they opened their borders for us, never were we allowed to enter the Arab countries without Visas, but at that time, the Arabs made an agreement with the Americans that they would let us in without Visas", he said.
"The struggle among the Arab countries lead us here, they never supported us, they were never united to protect us", he said.
Mohammad ended saying, " Salah Eddine el Ayyoubi was able to liberate Al Quds in 1187 AD, we definitely need another Salah Eddine".
Maysaa and Ghida, Mohammad's youngest two girls were listening to their father with great admiration. They approached and kissed him and one of them said, "Father we are going back to Palestine soon, don't worry God promised us victory is ours".
