After decades of legal disputes, Israel's Supreme Court ruled in May in favor of demolishing the village, home to about 190 people from the Jahalin Bedouin tribe and located between two Israeli settlements. The demolition of the tin and wood structures to clear the way for eventual expansion of the Mishur Adumim settlement could take place at any moment.

The Gaza Nakba demonstrations this week have done nothing to advance the situation of Palestinian refugees, nor did they provide relief to the people of Gaza, who dwell in an open-air prison, hemmed in and oppressed at every turn.

The willingness to rush the border fence despite the I.D.F.’s overwhelming firepower is a testimony to the despair of the people living in Gaza.

Most Israelis realize that the land, ultimately, belongs not to any one side but to God.

The priest said although parishes in the Holy Land tell their parishioners to resist occupation by educating themselves and preparing for the future, people in Gaza see no future.

"If I dwell on the future, it is too depressing....There is no future in maintaining a conflict."