Kofia · Göteborg · Swedish solidarity song

Leve Palestina, Krossa SionismenEnglish Lyrics and Translation

 

“Leve Palestina” is a Swedish-language solidarity song written and performed by Kofia, a Swedish-Palestinian band from Göteborg. It has been recorded by several other artists since, including Medina, and has found a second life on social media as a protest anthem.

Wording varies between recordings and live versions. Below is the most widely circulated Swedish text, set alongside a line-by-line English translation, followed by the story of where the song came from.

Leve Palestina, krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Och vi har odlat jorden

Och vi har skördat vetet

Vi har plockat citronerna

Och pressad oliverna

Och hela världen känner till vår jord

Och hela världen känner till vår jord

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Och vi har kastat stenar på

soldater och poliser

Och vi har skjutit raketer

mot våra fiender

Och hela världen känner till vår kamp

Och hela världen känner till vår kamp

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Och vi ska befria vårt land

från imperialismen

Och vi ska bygga up vårt land

till socialismen

Och hella världen kommer att bevittna

Och hella världen kommer att bevittna

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve, leve, leve Palestina

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina och krossa sionismen

Leve Palestina, krossa sionismen

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

And we have cultivated the earth

And we have harvested the wheat

We have picked the lemons

And pressed the olives

And the whole world knows our soil

And the whole world knows our soil

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

And we have thrown stones at

Soldiers and police

And we have fired missiles

At our enemies

And the whole world knows our struggle

And the whole world knows our struggle

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

And we will liberate our land

From imperialism

And we will build our land

To socialism

And the whole world will witness

And the whole world will witness

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long, long, long live Palestine

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Long live Palestine and crush Zionism

Kofia · Göteborg

The story behind the song

Music can become an anthem for a cause, echoing the sentiments of many and amplifying their voices. “Leve Palestina” is one such song, resonating with people who stand in solidarity with Palestine.

It is the work of Kofia, a Swedish-Palestinian band based in Göteborg. Active through the late 1970s and early 1980s, the group used music as a platform to express solidarity with Palestine, producing songs that have since become anthems for pro-Palestinian movements.

The name ‘Kofia’ (كوفية) is itself a reference to the Palestinian scarf, underlining where the band stood. Their music is rooted in the struggle for Palestinian rights and carries a clear commitment to justice and equality.

The title translates as “Long Live Palestine”. The song has gained recognition well beyond Sweden, and its rhythm and directness have made it a rallying cry internationally.

The band’s album closes with “Baladi” (‘My homeland’), a traditional melody given new lyrics by Totari centred on the right of return to Deir Yassin and Galilee — a reflection of the band’s wider focus on displacement and return.

What makes “Leve Palestina” endure is not only the tune but the message it carries: resilience, resistance, and the persistence of a people who have not been allowed to forget where they came from.

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