Xuanming Ren

Today there are around 5 million diasporas living abroad, 3 million of whom have been displaced to other countries as diasporas as a result of the war. In 1948, with the establishment of the Israeli government, some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes in what became known to Palestinians as Nakba, but this wave of mass exodus of Palestinians was not the only one, as nearly 100,000 were displaced in the Six-Day War in 1967. Together, these refugees who left their homes as a result of the war make up the majority of the Palestinian diaspora. In addition to this, there were others who emigrated for work, education and religion. In the decade following the Six-Day War there were still Palestinians who were forced to leave because of the control and occupation by the Israeli government and army. The first Israeli government later passed a series of laws prohibiting Palestinians who had left from returning to their homes, and the failure of the Palestinian-Israeli peace process made it difficult for Palestinians in exile to return to their homes.

The text and video material from Sebasitia is then loaded into the game engine for interaction. When the player approaches a defined area a text description of the area appears. Video and sound footage is also loaded into the site, and audio samples are automatically played when the player approaches certain areas. Sebastia National Park is one of the highlights of the virtual world, as the park itself is an expression of Israeli apartheid.