PRESS RELEASE :

Preparations are underway the world over to commemorate two major anniversaries in the Palestinian calendar in the coming days.

Lockdowns and social distancing measures in force in many countries means that this year supporters of Palestine are gearing up to mark Al-Quds Day (Friday 22nd May) in different, more creative ways.

Hundreds of organisations from all over the world have called for people to fly a Palestinian flag in their windows or cars for the last 10 days of Ramadan.

The supporting organisations cover the entire spectrum of society and include civil society activists, Jewish anti-Zionists and human rights groups, from every continent.

The preparations come as Palestinians prepare to mark Al-Nakba (the catastrophe), the name given to their forced expulsion from their land in 1948 to make way for the creation of the Zionist state. This year the anniversary falls on Friday 15th May.

To highlight the plight of the Palestinians, IHRC has also asked people to share art and poetry from Palestine using social media and has made a list of suggestions available on our website.

International Al-Quds Day became a fixture in the Muslim and non-Muslim calendar in 1979 when Imam Khomeini set aside the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to remember Palestine.

Each year, millions of people join rallies in cities around the world to voice their support for the Palestinians and repeat their call for an end to the Zionist regime’s atrocities and occupation of Palestine.

As the Coronavirus rips through countries everywhere, nowhere is the disease likely to be more keenly felt than in Palestine, particularly in Gaza, where millions of people live cheek by jowl in one of the most crowded places on earth.

Their suffering is amplified by Israel’s weaponisation of Covid-19 to prevent the entry of much needed medical equipment into Palestine and the passage of Palestinians across checkpoints to access health care in Israel or outside.

For more information, resources and the full list of supporting organisations please visit our website.

For more information or comment please contact the Press Office on (+44) 20 8904 4222 or (+44) 7958522196[ENDS]

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IHRC is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
Islamic Human Rights Commission
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