Istanbul – Action Group
The Action Group for Palestinians of Syria participated in the “Palestine Day – Heritage, Culture, and Art” event, held in Istanbul to commemorate the 78th anniversary of the Nakba (the Palestinian catastrophe). The event, which included the participation of cultural and educational institutions, as well as Palestinian, Arab, and Turkish figures, took place in the Beylikdüzü district.
It was jointly organized by the Palestine House for Culture, the Arif Educational Center, and the Misk Initiative, as part of efforts to strengthen the Palestinian cultural presence in the diaspora and preserve the Palestinian narrative and national memory among members of the Palestinian community.
The event transformed into a comprehensive cultural space that evoked aspects of Palestinian identity through literature, art, and heritage. The program included poetry readings in Arabic and Turkish, artistic performances by Palestinian children and youth, a heritage bazaar featuring Palestinian products, food, and handicrafts, and a photo and cartoon exhibition depicting key moments in the Palestinian cause and the experiences of refuge and displacement.
In a statement, Fayez Abu Eid, director of the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria, said that commemorating the Nakba in the diaspora “is no longer a symbolic act or a fleeting occasion, but has become a cultural necessity to protect the Palestinian narrative from erosion and oblivion.” He pointed out that the greatest challenge today “lies not only in conveying the truth, but also in being able to present it to new generations in a language they understand and engage with.”
Abu Eid added that cultural and artistic events have become “a parallel front of awareness, preserving the details of Palestinian life and reintroducing the Palestinian as a bearer of culture, knowledge, and creativity, not merely a statistic in news reports.” He emphasized that the participation of children and youth in various activities reflects “the continuity of the Palestinian narrative and its transmission from one generation to the next, despite attempts at erasure and uprooting.”
For their part, the organizers of the event affirmed that “Palestine Day” aims to strengthen the Palestinian cultural presence in the diaspora and open spaces for interaction with Arab and Turkish societies by employing literature, art, and heritage as tools to preserve the collective Palestinian memory and solidify national identity in the hearts of new generations.