Dr Lamma Mansour offers a vital historical lens through which to understand the ongoing crisis in Palestine— beyond the headlines of October 7.

Instead Dr Mansour urges us to look back to 1948 and the Nakba, the Arabic word for “catastrophe,” which marks the mass displacement and dispossession of over 750,000 Palestinians during the establishment of the state of Israel. She explains how the Nakba is not a closed chapter in history but a living process that continues to shape the lives of Palestinians today.

From the destruction of villages like Deir Yassin and Safuriyya to the ongoing demolitions in refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarm, the systemic removal of Palestinians from their land is a pattern that has persisted for decades. We hear stories of families who still hold the keys to homes they were forced to leave, of villages that were turned into national parks, and of legal manoeuvres like the Absentee Property Law and the Law of Return that institutionalised displacement and discrimination.

Parallels are also made between the Palestinian experience and colonial histories in places like New Zealand, referencing the peaceful resistance at Parihaka and the reoccupation efforts at Ihumātao.

The conversation touches on the international community’s response—or lack thereof—to these injustices. Despite UN resolutions affirming the right of return for Palestinian refugees, there has been little meaningful action.

Mansour highlights how Western governments often acknowledge the illegality of settlements under international law, yet fail to intervene in any substantive way. One particularly haunting story is that of the Christian village of Iqrit, whose residents were promised a temporary evacuation in 1948, only to have their village demolished on Christmas Eve in 1950. Today, only the church remains, and the descendants of Iqrit are allowed to return only in death—to be buried in the village cemetery.

This video is a must-watch for anyone seeking to understand the deeper historical context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It challenges viewers to move beyond simplistic narratives and to confront the uncomfortable truths of colonialism, displacement, and international complicity.

For group discussion in your parish setting, we’ve created a conversation guide. Download it here.