The world is finally watching Palestine. But who gets to narrate its story?

The world is finally giving attention to Palestine, but the question remains: who gets to tell its story? As courts and sports events spotlight the Palestinian cause, there is a parallel struggle over memory, heritage, and the Palestinians' right to narrate their own experiences.

Despite not qualifying for the Summer Football World Cup, activists in Mexico City formed a human Palestinian flag and displayed flags during key matches, making the Palestinian flag a defining symbol of the tournament. In the past three years, the Palestinian flag has come to represent global condemnation of Israeli actions, injustice, and colonial oppression.

A recent UN commission of inquiry found that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, with over 73,000 dead, primarily women and children, and 2,700 families removed from the civil register. An international court is currently hearing a genocide case brought by South Africa and 13 other nations, and Israeli leaders Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant have been issued arrest warrants for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Despite the global attention, Palestinians continue to suffer as their homes, hospitals, schools, archives, and universities are destroyed. UNESCO recorded damage to 164 cultural sites in Gaza, and the UN experts noted the destruction of all 12 universities and the burning of the Central Archives of Gaza. The assault on cultural and religious sites is central to the annihilation of Palestinians.

This destruction of memory and heritage is not only a war crime but a central aspect of genocide. The Palestinian struggle has become a key test case for decolonisation, which goes beyond revising curricula and syllabi. It requires empowering the Palestinians to decide what is preserved, restored, and remembered.

At the 12th annual conference of the Amsterdam School for Heritage, Memory, and Material Culture, experts discussed decolonial thinking and its impact on Palestine. Scholars such as Alette Smeulers, Marieke de Hoon, and Mitri Raheb explored the role of law and narrative sovereignty in the Palestinian context, emphasizing the urgency of empowering Palestinians to tell their own story.