Confronting the Enduring Legacy of Nakba Day
May 15th, 2025
Justice For All Canada marks 77 years since the Nakba today. “Nakba”, translated to “Catastrophe” in Arabic, is the historical mass expulsion and dispossession of over 750,000 Palestinians in 1948. At that time, Zionist militias carried out massacres to force Palestinians from their homes. These included razing entire villages and terrorizing civilian communities.
Canada’s federal government has consistently refused to meaningfully recognize Palestinian dispossession at the international level, despite its role in the 1947 UN Partition Plan that facilitated Palestinian displacement. For instance, Canada voted against a 2022 UN resolution to commemorate the Nakba's 75th anniversary, boycotted the UN's first official Nakba commemoration in 2023, and then opposed another 2024 resolution calling for annual recognition and archiving of Nakba testimonies.
The Arab Canadian Lawyers Association (ACLA) classifies Nakba denial as a form of anti-Palestinian racism that erases historical truth and undermines the rights of Palestinians in Canada and abroad. The Canadian government’s silence on Nakba-related resolutions starkly contrasts its recognition of other historical atrocities, such as its criminalization of Holocaust denial in 2022.
This double standard extends to Canada's foreign policy.
Canada allows the Nakba to continue through its millions of dollars of military transfers to Israel, including Canadian-made components integrated into U.S. military equipment (such as F-35 fighter jets), which are then supplied to the Israeli military and likely used in air strikes against civilians. It is also apparent through the lack of meaningful action taken to halt Israel’s blockade against Gaza. The Israeli military’s actions have led to the deliberate starvation of civilians, with nearly 2 million Palestinians experiencing food insecurity and 470,000 facing catastrophic levels of hunger.
These grave crimes are accompanied by shocking statements from Israeli officials. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has advocated for the "voluntary migration" of Palestinians from Gaza, a euphemism for forced displacement. He also stated that "nobody will let us cause 2 million civilians to die of hunger, even though it might be justified and moral". Such rhetoric reveals a clear strategy aimed at the systematic removal of Palestinians from their land.
Justice For All Canada calls on the Canadian government to:
These present-day measures to drive Palestinians from their homes mirror those of 1948—and Canada deliberately choosing silence as these tactics unfold signals how little value it places on Palestinian life.
Justice For All Canada marks 77 years since the Nakba today. “Nakba”, translated to “Catastrophe” in Arabic, is the historical mass expulsion and dispossession of over 750,000 Palestinians in 1948. At that time, Zionist militias carried out massacres to force Palestinians from their homes. These included razing entire villages and terrorizing civilian communities.
Canada’s federal government has consistently refused to meaningfully recognize Palestinian dispossession at the international level, despite its role in the 1947 UN Partition Plan that facilitated Palestinian displacement. For instance, Canada voted against a 2022 UN resolution to commemorate the Nakba's 75th anniversary, boycotted the UN's first official Nakba commemoration in 2023, and then opposed another 2024 resolution calling for annual recognition and archiving of Nakba testimonies.
The Arab Canadian Lawyers Association (ACLA) classifies Nakba denial as a form of anti-Palestinian racism that erases historical truth and undermines the rights of Palestinians in Canada and abroad. The Canadian government’s silence on Nakba-related resolutions starkly contrasts its recognition of other historical atrocities, such as its criminalization of Holocaust denial in 2022.
This double standard extends to Canada's foreign policy.
Canada allows the Nakba to continue through its millions of dollars of military transfers to Israel, including Canadian-made components integrated into U.S. military equipment (such as F-35 fighter jets), which are then supplied to the Israeli military and likely used in air strikes against civilians. It is also apparent through the lack of meaningful action taken to halt Israel’s blockade against Gaza. The Israeli military’s actions have led to the deliberate starvation of civilians, with nearly 2 million Palestinians experiencing food insecurity and 470,000 facing catastrophic levels of hunger.
These grave crimes are accompanied by shocking statements from Israeli officials. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has advocated for the "voluntary migration" of Palestinians from Gaza, a euphemism for forced displacement. He also stated that "nobody will let us cause 2 million civilians to die of hunger, even though it might be justified and moral". Such rhetoric reveals a clear strategy aimed at the systematic removal of Palestinians from their land.
Justice For All Canada calls on the Canadian government to:
- Officially recognize the Nakba and Canada's role in Palestine's partition.
- Formally acknowledge and adopt Nakba denial as a form of anti-Palestinian racism.
- Support the right of return for Palestinian refugees, as outlined in UN Resolution 194.
- Suspend all military exports to Israel, disclose the full list of military transfer permits which remain active, and implement a full, 2-way comprehensive arms embargo with Israel.
- Implement measures to hold Israeli officials accountable for ongoing violations of international law.
These present-day measures to drive Palestinians from their homes mirror those of 1948—and Canada deliberately choosing silence as these tactics unfold signals how little value it places on Palestinian life.