Palestinians mark uprooting in 1948 Mideast war

[May 15, 2010]  GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- Thousands of Palestinians have marched in Gaza to mark 62 years of displacement.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven out during the 1948 war surrounding Israel's creation. Palestinians call it the "catastrophe," or "nakba" in Arabic.

In Saturday's rally, Palestinians attempted to overcome their current internal divisions, at least briefly, by protesting together.

Gaza's Hamas rulers marched alongside their bitter rivals Fatah. They waved Palestinian flags and carried a giant key that is symbolic of their hoped-for return.

Some 5 million Palestinian refugees and their descendants are scattered through the Mideast.

Israel will not accede to their demands to return, saying it would mean the end of the Jewish state.

[Associated Press]

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