Nakba Day Protests 2025

The 2024 Nakba Day protests were the most extensive to occur in connection with the commemoration. Several gatherings that were attended by tens of thousands of attendees were recorded in several cities, with hotspots concentrated in Western Europe and in large North American urban centres. On 18 May 2024, protests in London were attended by an estimated 250,000 people, with smaller gatherings in Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff, and Edinburgh among other cities. Large-scale protests were likewise recorded in Barcelona, Madrid, Milan, Bologna, Berlin, Paris, Marseille, Toulouse and other large European urban centres.

In North America, Nakba Day coincided with several large-scale protests, with major demonstrations occurring in cities including New York City, Toronto, Washington, D.C., Miami, Cleveland, and Portland.

In both Europe and North America, university-based groups have been particularly active in spearheading the unrest, making campuses hotspots of demonstrations. Student groups at, among others, Columbia University in New York, Sorbonne and Sciences Po, in Paris, and Amsterdam University staged large-scale demonstrations and direct action in connection with pro-Palestine unrest.

Nakba Day protests are also common in the Middle East, due to the commemoration’s lasting political importance.  In 2024, particularly notable demonstrations occurred in Beirut, Tunis, Amman, and Rabat. In Israel, protests were concentrated in Tel Aviv, with the local Tel Aviv University being a focal point for the demonstrations.

The ongoing conflict in Gaza has almost certainly contributed to driving larger Nakba Day protests in countries and regions that have not previously been as impacted by pro-Palestinian protests as Western Europe, the Middle East, and North America. In the Asia-Pacific region, for instance, protests were held in cities like Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, and Osaka and Tokyo, Japan.

During the 2024 Nakba Day protests, episodes of violence between protesters and responding security forces were recorded at some locations. For instance, protests in Brooklyn, New York, resulted in around 40 arrests as violent clashes broke out between police and protesters. In Berlin, protests were halted due to the deployment of fireworks, posing a threat to bystanders. In London, local police arrested several people over violent chants and slogans.

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