Anayah Accilien, Contributing Photographer

Around 30 students gathered around dimly lit candles on the New Haven Green to mourn and commemorate the Palestinians who have lost their lives in the ongoing war in Gaza and over decades of Israeli military actions.

The event was hosted by Yalies4Palestine, or Y4P, as part of the group’s three-day commemoration of the two-year anniversary of the Gaza war. 

A student speaker who did not share her full name with the News said Israel was responsible for “the destruction of homes, the uprooting of families, the demolition of schools and hospitals, the erasure of towns and villages, the theft of land and the silencing of dreams” over more than a century.

In a speech, Rohan Lokanadham ’28 shared a story about a friend from Gaza who he said has had a typical experience there among Palestinians who have endured “for the last two years of active genocide” — an accusation Israeli officials have denied.

Lokanadham said his friend was paralyzed from the waist down under Israeli bombardment and had moved farther and farther south in Gaza. He is “a son, brother, husband and father, and is truly one of the kindest people I have ever met,” Lokanadham said.

Another student speaker led the crowd in a rendition of “from New Haven to Gaza, we shall not be moved.”

Lokanadham said more people are beginning to recognize Palestinians’ rights to dignity, safety and life — an acknowledgment that many at the event viewed as the first step toward lasting justice and rebuilding.

“I’m hoping that we will help in creating the conditions for a Palestinian state, creating the conditions for Palestinian dignity and life without genocide,” he said.

The event ended with a moment of silence, followed by a call to action: to share the stories of Palestinians.

Yalies4Palestine lost its status as a registered student organization in April after pro-Palestinian protests coinciding with a visit to New Haven by the far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.