On Monday afternoon, October 14, 2013, a massive demonstration was held in front of the Knesset by the residents of the villages of Iqrit and Kafr Bir’im, which have been stricken since 1948. His Eminence Bishop Elias Shakur, the Greek Catholic Bishop of Haifa, His Eminence Bishop Atallah Hanna, the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Sebastia, and a number of Arab and Jewish representatives spoke at the sit-in. Banners were raised demanding the return of the residents of Iqrit and Kafr Bir’im to the villages from which they were expelled in 1948, emphasizing their right to return to their villages. Professor Ibrahim Atallah was the moderator. The demonstration coincided with the opening of the winter session of the Israeli Knesset.