Fleeing Destruction

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“My dad took us to Yirka, and we were put in a makeshift Palestinian refugee camp… I wanted to know why my mother did not go with us, and I remember asking her… She is the one that said to Dad, ‘You take the children, you can protect them. I’m going to stay here. This is our home, this is our land, and this is our church, and if they want to kill me, I want to die at home.’ And then after several months, we came back, and my mother was alive… She was [a] loving, caring, spiritual nurturer, and she took care of us… She was everything. So, I want to salute all mothers.”

Editor’s Note: The British Empire assumed responsibility for Palestine in 1918, after overthrowing the Ottoman Empire in World War I. At that time, Jews made up about 10% of the population. This number increased to 30% during the 1930s with an influx of refugees from Europe. During 1947-1948, more than 700,000 Palestinian Arabs fled their homes or were violently expelled by Zionist militias or, during the Israeli War of Independence, the Israeli military. This catastrophic displacement is remembered by Palestinians as the Nakba. During this time, Abu-Akel's village avoided destruction because of the actions of his father. Heeding the warning of a Jewish officer, Labib Abu-Akel gathered the religious leaders of the village and told them not to fight because they would be destroyed if they tried. Instead, they laid out white sheets in surrender and were spared.