Palestinians mark 54th anniversary of Naksa Day

Palestinians marked on Friday the 54th anniversary of the 'Naksa', or ' the setback', with rallies in cities across the world amid escalating tensions in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories.

In 1967, the Six Day War began on June 5, leading Israel to triple its size and begin the longest occupation in modern history.

After launching pre-emptive strikes against Egypt, Jordan, Iraq and Syria, Israel captured East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, taking control of a territory it hadn't been able to occupy during the Arab–Israeli War in 1948.

The occupation forces are trying to disperse the demonstration at Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood after the Naksa and martyr Omar AlQasim martyrdom anniversary memorial event#SaveSheikhJarrah

pic.twitter.com/5v1fuzz82b

— المجتمع الرقمي الفلسطيني - UPDC (@UPALDC) June 5, 2021

Palestinians and their supporters marched on Friday to mark the anniversary of the displacement of nearly 400,000 Palestinians, in addition to the hundreds of thousands who were displaced in 1948.

Marches were held in the US, a staunch ally of Israel, in cities including New York, Huston, Detroit and Auckland.

6/5/2021. New York City - #Palestinians and their allies commemorated the 54th anniversary of #NaksaDay, the day Israel forcible removed thousands of Palestinians from their lands in 1967.

In 2021, Israel continues to steal land/homes from Palestinians.https://t.co/oD1qhLbik3 pic.twitter.com/qmrVWUHkjs

— Javier Soriano (@JavierSorianoNY) June 6, 2021

In Palestine, a march held in Jerusalem's embattled neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah resulted in further violence as Israeli forces used violence to disperse the crowd.

The occupation forces are trying to disperse the demonstration at Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood after the Naksa and martyr Omar AlQasim martyrdom anniversary memorial event#SaveSheikhJarrah

pic.twitter.com/5v1fuzz82b

— المجتمع الرقمي الفلسطيني - UPDC (@UPALDC) June 5, 2021

Many took to social media to express their grief and share personal stories of displacement.

"On this day, my father & his family stayed in a cave for 6 days before returning home and finding their village under Israeli control," one user wrote.

Israel annexed 44% of the territory allocated by the 1947 UN Partition Plan for a Palestinian state, marking the beginning of over half a century of brutal occupation of a land they believed was promised to them by God.

Despite a number of UN resolutions in favour of a withdrawal from these territories, Israel continues to occupy all of the annexed territories with the exception of the Sinai Peninsula, which it retreated from in 1982 following a peace treaty with Egypt.