Palestinians marked on Saturday the anniversary of what they call the Naqba, the "catastrophe" of Israel's creation in 1948, demanding the right of return of hundreds of thousands driven from their homes. Some 4,000 people marched in Gaza City in response to a joint appeal by Hamas and Fatah.
In the West Bank, sirens wailed through the Israeli-occupied territory as residents were asked to mark a minute's silence.
Speaking outside Gaza's UN headquarters, where the march terminated, Hamas official Ismail Radwan said "the right of return is sacred."
Meanwhile, Fatah official Zakaria al-Agha said a letter from all the Palestinian factions to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had been presented at the UN office. According to AFP, it asked him to "act as soon as possible to lift the injustice against the Palestinian people."
