Remembering the Nakba. And the possible power of music.

Yesterday marked 78 years since the Nakba, when Palestinians were expelled from their homes and the state of Israel was created.

It still goes on. Today I read this article about Palestinians being forced to demolish their own homes to make way for an Israeli theme park, a biblical theme park. 

It’s supposed to be part of an archaeological project, which is quite ironic since Israeli bombs have been responsible for destroying an archaeological warehouse in Gaza.

“Since the beginning of the war, Israel has damaged or destroyed hundreds of protected cultural sites and artefacts,” an archaeological group said in a statement. “The warehouse contained approximately 30 years of archaeological work in the Gaza Strip and housed tens of thousands of items. Some were removed but many were destroyed.”

“The IDF gave Palestinian archaeologists and the French-run École Biblique, which supports the site, three days to empty the warehouse before it was bombed but there was only time to remove some of the artefacts in a single convoy of trucks.

“We couldn’t go back for a second mission because of the lack of trucks and the availability of the people and mainly because of the danger, so some of the artefacts were lost,” an École Biblique official said.

The depot had been seized by Israeli forces in an offensive early last year when, the official said, employees of the Israel Antiquities Authority were allowed to inspect it, in violation of international law. On that occasion a global outcry prevented a plan to remove some of the artefacts.

Some of the objects that archaeologists managed to remove before the bombing were broken while being moved in open trucks, the only kind allowed by the Israeli military. They are now at an undisclosed location where they are open to the elements.”

Presumably these were not the right kind of archaeological artefacts!

Here’s a bit of Banksy art work.

It would be good to think that maybe the children of today could  bring about peace. 

Attempts have been made to use music to bring young people from Arab and Israeli communities together. 

“In 2014, construction began on the Barenboim–Said Academy in Berlin. A joint project Barenboim developed with Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said, the academy was planned as a site for young music students from the Arab world and Israel to study music and humanities in Berlin.[40] It opened its doors on 8 December 2016.”

From an article from 2021, there is this:

“Music is the universal language,” as the saying goes, and Nazareth violinist Nabeel Abboud-Ashkar began putting this into practice in Israel 10 years ago when he co-founded Polyphony, a community of musicians, educators, parents, and students devoted to bringing classical music to underserved students. They also introduce Arabic and Jewish music to students of both cultures, and offer a variety of programs for elementary school students and up.

The Israeli school system is mostly segregated between Arab and Jewish students but Polyphony wants to change that:

“OUR MISSION: Polyphony aims to bridge the divide between Arab and Jewish communities in Israel through music and to serve as a worldwide model for cooperation based on cultural exchange, dialogue and partnership.

They are an inclusive, supportive musical community:

Polyphony uses music to build a new kind of community. A classical music ensemble involves more than […] listening to music. [Polyphony’s] success depends upon the combination of each individual’s discipline and unified teamwork. In this way, each member is committed to the success of the entire ensemble.

This environment distinguishes Polyphony among programs using classical music as a diplomatic tool: Parents, students, teachers, and the community come together to achieve a shared goal of musical communication that transcends political affiliations.”

Feras, a 17-year-old Arab boy, said this about Polyphony: 

“When we Arab and Jewish musicians play together on one stage and read the same music, it makes me feel that maybe we still have hope…it’s possible for things to get better.”

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!