The Al-Nakba (The Catastrophe) of the Palestinian people created multiple tragedies: Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees were expelled from or fled their homeland and those who remained in the newly-established Jewish State of Israel became a national minority in their own homeland. Those who remained in the newly established State of Israel became citizens of the State, and now comprise 20% of the population. They are a part of the Palestinian people who currently live in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and the Diaspora. Arabic is their native language, and they belong to two religious communities: Muslims and Christians.

In 1947, the Palestinians comprised about 67% of the population of Palestine. During the Arab-Israeli war of 1948, approximately 780,000 of the pre-1948 Palestinian population were expelled or fled and became refugees in the Arab states and beyond. Palestinians were prohibited from returning to their homeland, in violation of Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and UN General Assembly Resolution 194. Furthermore, hundreds of villages were destroyed, national infrastructure and institutions disappeared, and Palestinian culture was oppressed, although Articles 1.2 of both the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) prohibits such destruction. Of the 150,000 Palestinians who remained in the new state and became citizens, approximately one quarter were driven from their homes and villages, and became internally displaced persons.

During the late 1980’s and the 1990’s`, Palestinian citizens of Israel began to rebuild their national institutions, such as associations and political parties. The 1990’s saw the reawakening of their national identification as Palestinians. The focus of the Palestinian minority in Israel on the situation in the Occupied Territories increased with th outbreak of the first Intifada (1987 – 1993), and further strengthened in September 2000, called to express solidarity with the Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem, Israeli police killed 13 Palestinian citizens of Israel and injured hundreds more. Security forces used inappropriate policing methods such as shooting live ammunition, and consistently used indiscriminate and excessive force. Situations such as those in Nazareth, in which police looked on and shot at Palestinians while hundreds of Jewish citizens demonstrated and tens attacked Palestinian citizens and their property, make it clear that this was a predetermined, official plan based not on fear, but on the national identity of the demonstrators.

Although the Declaration of the Independence of the State of Israel promised complete equality for all its citizens, it refers specifically to Israel as a “Jewish state” committed to the “ingathering of the exiles.” Accordingly, the State of Israel has one people, one history, and one national memory – that of the Jewish people.

Legalized discrimination: Israel applies 20 major racist and discriminatory laws that address such issues as citizenship; political participation; culture and language; education; religious rights; and social, economic, and employment rights. These laws emphasize the ethnicity of the State as a Jewish State; give benefits or privileges solely to the Jewish population; or impose restrictions on the civil and political rights of Palestinian citizens because of their national belonging or because they do not belong to the majority ethnic group. The Supreme Court of Israel has delivered several forward-thinking decisions in anti-discrimination cases involving the rights of women, gays & lesbians, the disabled and other groups. However, the Court has moved very slowly and conservatively in cases involving equal rights for Palestinian citizens and only since the late 1990’s. Further, the court system shows great disparities in criminal cases involving Palestinian and Jewish criminal defendants in areas such as indictment, conviction, and sentencing.

That is why “ Ahali “ was founded, promoting grassroots activism among the Palestinian minority in Israel in order to reach prosperity and equality.