Each year, Israel celebrates its independence on Yom HaAtzmaut, while Palestinians mark a much more nefarious day around the same time. The Jerusalem Post reports on the Palestinians' annual "Nakba Day," marking the catastrophe they see as the Jewish state:
"Nakba Day," or "Day of Catastrophe," is observed annually by Palestinians and Israeli-Arabs to commemorate the events following the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Nakba Day is marked on May 15, the day following the Gregorian calendar date for Israel's independence. Israel celebrates its independence according to the Hebrew calendar date. According to the Palestinian narrative, approximately 700,000 Arabs fled or were expelled from their homes during the 1948 Israeli War of Independence.
During recent years, Nakba Day has witnessed increasingly violent protests and clashes with IDF forces in the West Bank. In 2011, Syrian protesters attempted to forcibly cross the border with Israel into the Golan Heights.
In 2011, the Knesset passed a law requiring the state to fine local authorities and other state-funded bodies for holding events marking Israeli Independence Day as the “Nakba” or for supporting armed resistance or racism against Israel. It also bans desecration of the state flag or national symbols.
