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Palestinians mourn 60th anniversary of 'the Catastrophe'

Palestinians set a US flag on fire during a Nakba rally in the West Bank

While Israelis celebrated the 60th anniversary of their nation's birth with fireworks and barbecues, sirens wailed across the Palestinian territories today in mourning

It was a day of grief for Palestinians, who refer to the founding of Israel as the Catastrophe, or al-Nakba

Thousands took to the streets to commemorate those exiled or killed in the conflict that followed the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. More than 700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled, their property was expropriated and they have not been allowed to return

Nearly 5 million Palestinians and their descendants still live in makeshift refugee camps across the neighbouring region

"There are two peoples living on this beloved land - one celebrates independence and the other feels pain of the memory of its Nakba

independent state appear dimmer