Palestinians hold the key to their home in Israel, expelled in 1948. On May 15, every year the Palestinians commemorate the “Nakba” or “the catastrophe”.
Each year on 15 May, Palestinians across the globe mark a solemn day of remembrance. As the rest of the world moved forward from the aftermath of the Second World War, for Palestinians, 1948 marked the beginning of an ongoing catastrophe: the Nakba.
The Arabic word for “catastrophe” has come to encapsulate not just a historical event, but a continuous process of displacement, dispossession and denial of fundamental rights that persists to this day.
What Was the Nakba?
The Nakba refers to the mass expulsion and dispossession of Palestinians during the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. Between 1947 and 1949, approximately 750,000 Palestinians, more than half of the Palestinian population at that time, were forcibly expelled from their homes. Some 530 villages and towns were destroyed, and about 15,000 Palestinians were killed in what scholars increasingly recognise as ethnic cleansing.
Yet to frame the Nakba solely as a series of events in 1948 misses a crucial truth: the Nakba did not start in 1948, nor has it ended. The roots of Palestinian dispossession stretch back to the late 19th century with the emergence of political Zionism in Europe and the subsequent colonisation of Palestine. The violent displacement that culminated in 1948 was preceded by years of strategic planning and smaller-scale expulsions.
As Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish once observed, the Nakba is
“an extended present that promises to continue into the future.”
Palestinians today speak of an ongoing Nakba, a continual process of displacement, fragmentation and denial of their right to self-determination.
The Islamic Scholarly Perspective on the Nakba
From an Islamic scholarly viewpoint, the Nakba represents a profound challenge to concepts of justice (‘adl) that lie at the heart of Islamic ethics. In Islamic theology, justice is not merely a human aspiration but a divine attribute. The Qur’an describes Allah as standing firmly for justice (Qur’an 3:18), and repeatedly commands believers to uphold justice even against their own interests.
Islamic scholars frame the Palestinian experience through several theological and ethical lenses:
The Concept of Divine Justice and Human Suffering
The question of why Allah permits suffering has been debated by Muslim theologians for centuries. While different schools of thought approach this question differently, most Islamic scholars emphasise that injustice in this world does not contradict divine justice. Rather, it creates moral imperatives for believers to stand against oppression.
Sheikh Dr Akram Nadwi, a prominent Islamic scholar, notes:
“The Qur’an is clear that we must stand with those who are oppressed (mustad’afin), regardless of their faith. The Palestinian experience represents one of the clearest examples of systematic oppression in our modern world.”
The Sanctity of Home and Land in Islamic Tradition
The forcible removal of Palestinians from their homes carries particular significance in Islamic tradition, where concepts of home, land, and inheritance are deeply sacred. The Qur’an speaks extensively about the sanctity of homes and the prohibition against unlawfully seizing another’s property.
Dr Khaled Abou El Fadl, a leading authority on Islamic law, explains:
“In Islamic legal tradition, the forced dispossession of people from their homes and lands constitutes one of the gravest injustices. The principle of ‘istisḥāb’—the presumption of continuity—establishes that those who have been unjustly dispossessed maintain their right to their property across generations.”
Collective Memory and Testimonial Justice
Islamic scholars emphasise the importance of bearing witness to injustice—a concept known as “shahāda” in Islamic tradition. The annual commemoration of the Nakba fulfils a religious and ethical duty to preserve memory against forces of erasure and denial.
Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a prominent Islamic jurist, connects this to broader Qur’anic themes:
“The Qur’an commands believers to stand as witnesses to truth and justice (4:135). Preserving the memory of injustices like the Nakba is not merely historical documentation but a religious duty that ensures truth is not buried by the powerful.”
The Ongoing Nakba: Contemporary Realities
Today, the Nakba manifests in multiple interlocking systems of control and dispossession:
In Gaza, over 2 million Palestinians, most of them descendants of refugees from 1948, have endured a crushing blockade since 2007, culminating in the devastating war that began in October 2023. As one Gaza resident told Al Jazeera,
“From 1948 to now, a Nakba that never ended.”
In the occupied West Bank, Palestinians face a matrix of walls, checkpoints and expanding settlements that fragment their territory and lives. Home demolitions continue, a direct echo of the village destructions of 1948.
For the approximately 1.5 million Palestinian citizens of Israel, the Nakba represents both historical trauma and ongoing discrimination. Israel’s “Nakba Law” of 2011 authorised the withdrawal of state funding from any institution that commemorates the Nakba, institutionalising what scholars call “Nakba denial.”
For the millions of Palestinian refugees scattered across Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and beyond, the Nakba means living in a state of permanent exile, denied their internationally recognised right of return.
Reframing the Nakba: From Victimhood to Resilience
While acknowledging the immense suffering caused by the Nakba, Islamic scholars and Palestinian intellectuals also emphasise the remarkable resilience of the Palestinian people. This resilience manifests in multiple ways, from sumud (steadfastness) in the face of occupation to the preservation of cultural heritage and the ongoing struggle for justice.
Sheikh Muhammad al-Ghazali, the renowned Egyptian scholar, addressed such circumstances in his writings on Islamic ethics:
“The strength of faith manifests most powerfully in times of trial. The concept of sabr (patience) in Islam is not passive acceptance but active perseverance through hardship with trust in divine justice. The Palestinian sumud exemplifies this Islamic principle in practice.”
The International Legal Dimension
From an Islamic legal perspective, the right of return for Palestinian refugees is not merely a political demand but a fundamental right grounded in principles of justice that transcend any single religious tradition. Islamic scholars note the consonance between Islamic principles of justice and international legal norms regarding refugee rights.
The UN General Assembly Resolution 194, passed in December 1948, affirms the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes. This resolution has been reaffirmed by the UN over 130 times, yet implementation remains elusive. In 2023, the UN for the first time officially commemorated the Nakba, marking seventy-five years of ongoing displacement.
Healing and Reconciliation: An Islamic Framework
Islamic scholars emphasise that acknowledging historical injustices is a prerequisite for genuine reconciliation. Drawing on Qur’anic principles of justice and mercy, they argue that any lasting peace must be founded on truthful recognition of the Nakba and meaningful redress for its victims.
Professor Ebrahim Moosa, a leading Islamic thought scholar, observes:
“The Qur’an teaches that reconciliation (sulh) is only possible through justice (‘adl). Erasing the Nakba from history or denying its ongoing nature makes genuine peace impossible.”
Conclusion: The Nakba and Universal Ethical Principles
As we reflect on the Nakba 76 years after its inception, its significance extends beyond the Palestinian context. The systematic dispossession and ongoing denial of Palestinian rights challenges universal ethical principles and international legal norms.
For Muslims globally, standing in solidarity with Palestinians represents not merely a political position but an ethical imperative grounded in Islamic principles of justice, dignity and universal human brotherhood. As the Prophet Muhammad stated in his farewell sermon:
“An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab… except by piety and good action.”
The commemoration of the Nakba thus serves multiple purposes: honouring the experiences of those who suffered, preserving historical truth against forces of denial and recommitting to the ongoing struggle for justice. It reminds us that catastrophes are not merely events that happen to passive victims, but historical processes that can and must be reversed through collective action guided by ethical principles.
As Palestinians mark another year of displacement, their struggle reminds us of a fundamental truth affirmed in Islamic tradition: that justice delayed is not justice denied, and that the arc of history, however long, bends ultimately toward justice.
This article is published by Forgotten Ummah as part of our ongoing commitment to amplifying voices and perspectives from across the Muslim world. The views expressed represent an Islamic scholarly and academic journalistic analysis of historical events with profound contemporary implications.
