Artists in the Gaza Strip are commemorating Nakba, or the Palestinian Catastrophe, by painting murals and releasing thousands of balloons into the sky.

Nakba marks the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their land in 1948, before the fabrication of Israel.

As part of activities marking 61 years of Nakba, Palestinian artists painted a major mural on a wall in camp Givat Zeev, northwest of Gaza City.

In the annual ceremony painting is used as a means of expressing the Palestinian feelings. The murals likewise reflect the strength of young Palestinian artists, and illustrate the continued emphasis on the refugees’ right to return.

One painting depicts a grandfather, father and son standing together near their house in a village they were forced to flee.

Another artwork expresses the Israeli policy of Judaizing al-Quds (Jerusalem) that has been ongoing for years.

In the West Bank’s Ramallah, the municipality named a number of streets in the city after the villages destroyed in 1948.

The commemoration will continue until May 15.

(Press TV)