Gaza researchers determined to record Nakba generation before time runs out

Tucked into a quiet basement suite in the main building of the immaculate Islamic University of Gaza campus, the Oral History Center could at first be mistaken for a bursar or registrar’s office.

But its stacks of metal filing cabinets may contain more memories per square meter than any other place in the occupied Gaza Strip.

Researcher Nermin Habid said that the center conducted interviews with those who had witnessed the Nakba (Arabic for catastrophe), the ethnic cleansing ahead of Israel’s foundation in 1948, as well as the Naksa (setback), Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, Golan Heights and Sinai in 1967.

“We have already conducted 1,500 oral interviews and archived audio files from them,” Habid added. “A meeting can last anywhere from half an hour, to two or three hours. We can also have follow-up meetings.

“We have also published 120 [interviews] in written form. In the future, we plan video interviews. We hope to use them to produce a documentary film about the history of Palestine.”

Launched as part of the university’s faculty of arts in 1998, the Oral History Center has a staff of experienced field researchers and recent graduates from the university’s departments of history, press and media, and social studies. more

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