WASHINGTON D.C. - On the 78th anniversary of the Nakba, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) has reintroduced H.Res. 1289, a resolution urging the United States to officially recognize the Palestinian catastrophe of 1948 as an ongoing humanitarian and human rights crisis .
First proposed in 2022, the resolution has garnered support from 12 Democratic co-sponsors, including Representatives Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Cori Bush (D-MO), and Summer Lee (D-PA) .
The reintroduction comes as Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed over 72,000 Palestinians since October 2023, according to UN figures, with another 171,000 injured. The ongoing war has displaced nearly the entire population of Gaza and created famine conditions across the strip .
H.Res. 1289 calls for several specific actions by the United States government:
| Provision | Description |
|---|---|
| Recognition of the Nakba | Acknowledgment that the Nakba is an ongoing catastrophe that began in 1948 |
| Right of return | Support for Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homes and properties under UN Resolution 194 |
| Renewed UNRWA funding | Reversal of US decisions to defund the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees |
| Educational initiatives | Public education on Palestinian dispossession and the historical record of the Nakba |
| Condemnation of ongoing denial | Rejection of efforts to erase or deny the Nakba as a historical fact |
The resolution states that "through systematic ethnic cleansing, and the depopulation and destruction of over 500 Palestinian towns and villages, and the massacre of Palestinian civilians, more than 700,000 Palestinians were expelled" between 1947 and 1949 .
It further recognizes that the Nakba "is an ongoing catastrophe, as Palestinian refugees continue to be denied their right to return to their homes and properties, and as Israel continues its occupation of Palestinian land, illegal settlements, and daily violence against Palestinians" .
The Nakba (Arabic for "catastrophe") refers to the 1947-1948 period during which, according to Palestinian and international historians, over 700,000 Palestinians were expelled or fled from their homes as the State of Israel was established .
Key historical facts cited by the resolution:
Over 500 Palestinian towns and villages were depopulated and destroyed
Thousands of Palestinians were killed in massacres during the 1947-1949 war
Palestinian refugees and their descendants now number over 5 million across the region
UN Resolution 194 (1948) affirms the right of return for Palestinian refugees
The Nakba is ongoing - displacement and dispossession have continued for 78 years
As New York Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani noted in a Nakba Day message: "Today marks Nakba Day, an annual day of remembrance to commemorate the expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians between 1947 and 1949 during the creation of the State of Israel and the year that followed."
Critics of the resolution, including Israel's Foreign Ministry, counter that:
The Nakba occurred following the rejection by Arab states and Palestinian leadership of the 1947 UN Partition Plan
Five Arab armies invaded the newly declared State of Israel in 1948
The Arab states and Palestinian leadership bear responsibility for the war and its consequences
Approximately 850,000 Jews were expelled from Arab countries following 1948, creating a parallel refugee crisis
However, supporters of the resolution argue that:
The UN Partition Plan was not binding without Palestinian consent
Palestinian civilians were not responsible for Arab state decisions
Zionist militias committed documented massacres that terrorized Palestinian populations into flight
The expulsion of Jews from Arab countries, while tragic, does not negate Palestinian claims
The resolution currently has 12 co-sponsors, all Democrats. This is a decrease from the 19 co-sponsors who supported the previous version of the resolution in 2023-2024 .
Current co-sponsors include:
| Representative | State |
|---|---|
| Rashida Tlaib | Michigan |
| Ilhan Omar | Minnesota |
| Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez | New York |
| Cori Bush | Missouri |
| Summer Lee | Pennsylvania |
| Jamaal Bowman | New York |
| Andre Carson | Indiana |
| Delia Ramirez | Illinois |
| Others | Various |
While the number of co-sponsors has decreased, the resolution's reintroduction on the 78th anniversary of the Nakba - at a time when Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed over 72,000 Palestinians - represents an effort to keep Palestinian human rights on the congressional agenda .
The reintroduction of the Nakba resolution comes amid the ongoing Israel-Gaza war, which has killed over 72,000 Palestinians and injured 171,000 .
The debate over the resolution reflects deeper divisions:
| Pro-Recognition Arguments | Anti-Recognition Arguments |
|---|---|
| Nakba is a well-documented historical fact | Recognition would delegitimize Israel |
| Palestinian refugees have legal right of return | Right of return would mean end of Jewish state |
| Ongoing Nakba continues through settlement expansion | Equivalent of Jewish refugees from Arab states ignored |
| US complicity requires acknowledgment and remedy | Resolution ignores Arab aggression in 1948 |
The resolution's sponsors argue that recognizing the Nakba is a prerequisite for meaningful peace. As Tlaib has stated, you cannot resolve a conflict if you refuse to acknowledge its origins. Critics argue that recognition of the Nakba would effectively erase Israel's legitimacy as a Jewish state.
The resolution calls for the United States to renew funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) , which provides education, healthcare, and humanitarian assistance to over 5 million Palestinian refugees across Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Gaza, and the West Bank.
The US has historically been the largest donor to UNRWA but has periodically suspended funding amid political disputes. The Biden administration resumed funding in 2021, but the agency remains underfunded and under pressure from both Israeli officials and some US lawmakers who argue it perpetuates the refugee issue.
Proponents argue that UNRWA is the only lifeline for millions of Palestinian refugees who have no other source of support. They further note that the agency provides education, healthcare, and food assistance - not political advocacy.
Critics, including Israel's government, argue that UNRWA perpetuates the refugee issue by defining refugee status as inheritable, unlike all other UN refugee programs. They also have accused the agency of allowing Hamas infiltration, which UNRWA denies .
A standard Israeli counter-argument to Nakba recognition is the parallel expulsion of approximately 850,000 Jews from Arab countries following 1948. These Mizrahi (Eastern) Jews were expelled or fled from countries including Iraq, Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen, and Morocco, often leaving behind centuries-old communities and significant property.
Some Israeli officials argue that any recognition of Palestinian refugee claims must be accompanied by recognition of Jewish refugee claims - and that the two populations should be resolved together, either through compensation or resettlement.
Pro-Palestinian advocates counter that:
The expulsion of Jews from Arab countries was a response to the creation of Israel - not the cause of the Nakba
Israel has already absorbed Mizrahi Jews as citizens, while Palestinian refugees remain stateless
The two issues are not morally equivalent
Acknowledging one does not require ignoring the other
The debate over Nakba recognition reflects deep divisions within American politics, particularly within the Democratic Party.
Pro-Palestinian wing - Representatives Tlaib, Omar, and Ocasio-Cortez represent a growing constituency that views Palestinian rights as a core human rights issue and believes that recognizing historical injustice is necessary for peace.
Pro-Israel establishment - Many Democratic and most Republican leaders oppose Nakba recognition, arguing that it would delegitimize Israel and undermine the two-state solution.
The public - Polling on Nakba recognition is limited, but surveys show growing sympathy for Palestinians among younger Americans and Democrats, while older Americans and Republicans remain firmly pro-Israel.
House leadership has not indicated whether the resolution will receive a floor vote. Even if passed, the resolution is non-binding. However, its symbolic weight is significant - and its reintroduction on the 78th anniversary of the Nakba ensures that the issue will remain in public discourse.
The resolution has been referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where its prospects for a vote remain uncertain. Even if the committee does not advance the resolution, its introduction ensures that the Nakba - and the ongoing displacement of Palestinians - will be discussed in Congress.
As the war in Gaza continues, as Palestinian casualties mount, and as the humanitarian crisis deepens, the debate over historical responsibility is likely to intensify.
Palestinians were expelled from their homes in 1948. That is not opinion. That is history.
The question is not whether the Nakba happened. The question is whether the United States will finally acknowledge it.
