Sands of Sorrow

Perhaps the most haunting narrated observation made in Sands of Sorrow about the 750,000 displaced Palestinian refugees is the one describing their state of hope “that soon, somewhere, the way will open for permanent resettlement and lasting security.” With the earliest footage documenting Palestinians fleeing across borders and settling in camps – then made of cloth, now made of concrete and brick – the film was originally produced by the Council for Relief of Palestinian Arab Refugees as a plea for international emergency aid. Journalist and activist Dorothy Thomson, who had just returned from visiting the camps and speaks of her experience there in the opening sequence, concludes that “the impression left on [her] mind by these wretched casualties of political change is much more depressing than the film.” Decades later, her comments still hold relevance.
On the plight of Arab refugees from the Arab-Israeli war. Dorothy Thompson speaks on the refugee problem. Refugees live in tents in the Gaza Strip, are given blankets and food by Egyptian soldiers, and receive flour from UNICEF. A Lebanese priest conducts services. Refugees work as plumbers, carpenters, tailors, and shoemakers in the city of Jerusalem. Doctors vaccinate refugees against disease. Shows the squalid living conditions in refugee camps, starving children, and emphasizes the hopeless condition of the refugees.