Javier Bardem says Nakba ‘never ended,’ calls Gaza ‘genocide’ in UN message

Spanish actor Javier Bardem said the Nakba “never ended,” describing Israel’s actions in Gaza as “genocide” and its policies in the occupied West Bank as “ethnic cleansing and apartheid” in a message marking the anniversary of the 1948 mass displacement of Palestinians.

The US social media company X account of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations on Friday shared Bardem’s recorded remarks during a screening for UN representatives of the Palestinian-themed film All That’s Left Of You.

In his message, Bardem stressed that the Palestinian people have long struggled against what he described as Israel’s policies of genocide and ethnic cleansing.

“We understand that the Nakba never ended. It is playing out today in Gaza as genocide and in the West Bank as ethnic cleansing and apartheid,” Bardem said.

The Spanish actor also praised the Palestinians’ century-long “determination to remain on their land and to thrive as a people with a rich culture who deserve to be free and to return home,” describing their struggle against erasure as one defined by extraordinary resilience, courage, and steadfast resolve.

The film, which portrays the trauma and search for hope experienced by three generations of a Palestinian family following the 1948 Nakba, was selected by Jordan as its submission for the 98th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film.

Palestinians commemorate May 15 as the “Nakba” (“Great Catastrophe”) following Israel’s declaration of independence on May 14, 1948, and the subsequent forced displacement of Palestinians from their homes.

During the Nakba, Israel expelled nearly 1 million Palestinians from their homes and destroyed 675 Palestinian towns and villages. More than 70 massacres were carried out by Zionist militias, killing over 15,000 Palestinians.

While Israel continues what Palestinians and rights groups describe as genocide in Gaza, Israeli forces have also intensified raids, violence, and repression against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.