Bethlehem: hundreds mark the 60th Nakba by carrying the largest key in the world

At least 700 Palestinians from the southern West Bank district marched on Thursday side by side next to the largest key in the world to mark the 60th anniversary of the Nakba – catastrophe.

Organizers hope this key will enter the Guinness book for world records – photo by IMEMC’s Ghassan Bannoura

Today’s event, which was organized by the Palestinian Committee for commemorating the 60th Nakba year, started at around midday from the Duhyisha Refugee camp located in the southern part of Bethlehem.

The event started as a truck arrived with the largest key in the world, and then people followed all the way to Al Azah refugee camp then to Ayidah refugee camp were the key was installed on a concert gate. The key represents symbolize the right of retune to the Palestinian refugees.

Speachs were delivered as the key was installed on top of the gate; first s peach was delivered by an old man, Haj Abu Ahmad, who witnessed the Nakba first hand.

Later, speeches were given by local MPs and political leaders that retorted the Palestinian demand of right of return.

The commemoration of the Naqba-Catastrophe- Palestinians remember the creation of the state of Israel on their land in 1948, which resulted in the displacement of over 700,000 people from their homes, and the imprisonment of the rest into refugee enclaves in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

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World’s Largest Key in Bethlehem

Bethlehem / Munjed Jadou - The Aida Youth Activity Center is located in northern Bethlehem’s Aida Refugee Camp.Today it has launched a project to build a gigantic structure in the shape of key hole, in addition to the largest iron key which goes next to it. This is all in memorial of 60 years of Al Nakba, the Catastrophe.

The key is 10 meters long and weighs two tons The key hole structure is about 12 meters high. The key hole structure is about 12 meters high.

The key represents the symbol of Right of Return, United Nations resolution 194, for Palestinians over the years. This comes to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba (The Catastrophe) in 1948.

Mr. Munther Ameera, the Director of the Center, asserts that this campaign aims at raising awareness to the unsolved and forgotten problem of Palestinian refugees.

It also aims at making the international world more active in pressuring the Israeli occupation to yield to the UN’s many resolutions, particularly UN resolution 194, which grants Palestinian refugees their Right of Return to their homes and lands from which they have been expelled.\

Local and international supporters of the Right of Return will gather on 8 May at the Key Monument at the gates of Aida Refugee Camp. This demonstration will protest the ongoing occupation and its manifestations such as the Wall which surrounds this refugee camp from two sides. In addition, Ameera hopes that by building this Key Monument it will be entered into the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest key in the world.

Ameera says this idea was a collaboration with journalists from the Alzaitona Network. He thought of building the largest key in the world at the entrance of the camp in hopes of raising awareness in the international community to the forgotten issue of Palestinian refugees.

“We need to pressure the world to make the solving of the refugees issue, who are still hoping to return to their lands and homes and to end their long misery as it is their legal and moral right granted by the UN and international law, a priority.”
Palestinian News Network