14 dec 2013
Hamas movement affirmed its adherence to resistance as the only strategic choice to liberate Palestine, defeat the occupation and achieve the right of return for the Palestinian refugees. The movement said in a statement, commemorating its 26th inception anniversary on Saturday, it will never give up the national constants and rights.
It denounced the futile PA-Israeli negotiations and stressed its adherence to the resistance as the only way to protect the people, Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque and the national constants, despite all the obstacles and conspiracies.
Hamas underlined that the protection of Jerusalem and the Islamic and Christian holy sites is a national and Arab duty, and that it will confront all the Israeli occupation attempts to Judaize the holy places and Jerusalem and displace its residents.
It also called on Fatah movement to implement the terms of the national reconciliation and to work on restructuring the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) according to a unified strategy based on the resistance and the adherence to the rights and national constants.
It demanded the current leadership of the PLO to halt the futile negotiations with the occupation, and reject the U.S. pressure that aim to liquidate the Palestinian cause.
The movement also urged the Arab League to end the unjust blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip.
It denounced the futile PA-Israeli negotiations and stressed its adherence to the resistance as the only way to protect the people, Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque and the national constants, despite all the obstacles and conspiracies.
Hamas underlined that the protection of Jerusalem and the Islamic and Christian holy sites is a national and Arab duty, and that it will confront all the Israeli occupation attempts to Judaize the holy places and Jerusalem and displace its residents.
It also called on Fatah movement to implement the terms of the national reconciliation and to work on restructuring the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) according to a unified strategy based on the resistance and the adherence to the rights and national constants.
It demanded the current leadership of the PLO to halt the futile negotiations with the occupation, and reject the U.S. pressure that aim to liquidate the Palestinian cause.
The movement also urged the Arab League to end the unjust blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip.
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Syrian children have suffered the "sharpest and most rapid" decline in education standards in the history of the region, UN and aid agencies said in a report published Friday.
"Nearly three years of brutal conflict in Syria have reversed more than a decade of progress in children's education," said the children's fund UNICEF, refugee agency UNHCR, and the World Vision and Save the Children charities. While Syria once had one of the Middle East's best education indicators, the decline has been "the sharpest and most rapid ... of anywhere in the region," it said. |
"More than 4,000 Syrian schools have been destroyed, damaged or turned into shelters for displaced people," said the report, adding that nearly half of Syria's 4.8 million Syrian children of school age are not in school.
Also, "more than half a million refugee children are not in school outside Syria. The numbers are rising by the day."
Children "have been forced to quit their education as fighting has destroyed classrooms, left children too terrified to go to school, or seen families flee the country," said a statement accompanying the report.
"At best, children are getting sporadic education. At worst, they drop out of schools and are forced to work to support their families," it added.
Teachers have been killed or have fled, schools destroyed or used as military positions, and parents have grown wary of the "risk" of sending their children to class.
Refugee children also face a "different dialect, different curricula, limited or no learning spaces, physical safety, poverty, and community tensions."
In host countries such as Lebanon or Jordan where hundreds of thousands of Syrians have sought refuge, local communities too pay the price of Syria's conflict as classrooms have become "overcrowded."
Jordan is expecting a 40 percent rise in the number of Syrian schoolchildren by the end of 2014, and in Lebanon, the number is expected to double, said the report.
It recommended long-term planning for the education of displaced Syrian children and called for more support to host countries.
Also, "more than half a million refugee children are not in school outside Syria. The numbers are rising by the day."
Children "have been forced to quit their education as fighting has destroyed classrooms, left children too terrified to go to school, or seen families flee the country," said a statement accompanying the report.
"At best, children are getting sporadic education. At worst, they drop out of schools and are forced to work to support their families," it added.
Teachers have been killed or have fled, schools destroyed or used as military positions, and parents have grown wary of the "risk" of sending their children to class.
Refugee children also face a "different dialect, different curricula, limited or no learning spaces, physical safety, poverty, and community tensions."
In host countries such as Lebanon or Jordan where hundreds of thousands of Syrians have sought refuge, local communities too pay the price of Syria's conflict as classrooms have become "overcrowded."
Jordan is expecting a 40 percent rise in the number of Syrian schoolchildren by the end of 2014, and in Lebanon, the number is expected to double, said the report.
It recommended long-term planning for the education of displaced Syrian children and called for more support to host countries.
12 dec 2013
The Action Group for Palestinians in Syria announced that six Palestinians were killed in Syria on Wednesday while a mother and her child drowned while trying to reach Greece in a boat. The group said in a statement on Thursday that six Palestinians were killed in an attack by armed men on a roadblock manned by the Palestinian Liberation Army in Reef Damascus on Wednesday.
It said that in another incident Palestinian refugee Maha Al-Saadi and her child Abdulrahman drowned off the coasts of Greece after Greek coastguards forced a boat carrying refugees to return back to Turkish regional waters.
It said that in another incident Palestinian refugee Maha Al-Saadi and her child Abdulrahman drowned off the coasts of Greece after Greek coastguards forced a boat carrying refugees to return back to Turkish regional waters.
11 dec 2013
ANERA (American Near East Refugee Aid) announced on Tuesday, a third grant from UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to implement a four-month emergency program in the Sidon area of Lebanon for Palestinian refugees from Syria.
The relief project will focus on the basic needs of Palestinian refugees from Syria during the cold winter months. ANERA is partnering with the community-based association Najdeh to distribute basic supplies for 2,300 refugee families from Syria (8,000 individuals) and their host families in Ein El Helweh and Mieh Mieh refugee camps and nearby gatherings.
The winter supplies include 5,500 quilts, 4,600 blankets, 460 gas heaters and fuel for three months, 2,300 emergency lighting lamps, 2,750 family hygiene kits, winter clothing for 900 children under five, as well as health education and winter illness educational sessions for 2,700 families.
ANERA was one of the first international organizations to survey and respond to the needs of Palestinian refugees from Syria in Lebanon. Previous grants from OCHA enabled ANERA to implement emergency relief campaigns in several refugee camps and gatherings in Tyre and Beirut.
The latest survey of refugee needs reveals that one out of two families lack heating in their dwelling, three out of four families do not have enough blankets for all family members and nine out of 10 families do not have sufficient winter clothing.
Aware that women are among the most vulnerable refugees, ANERA health program manager Dima Zayat said ANERA's programs give special attention to their needs: "As women focus on their family's well-being, they often forget about their own specific needs. Many have taken charge of their families and live in difficult conditions because they have lost their husbands or their husbands stayed behind in Syria."
Ms. Zayat added women refugees face even greater challenges. "ANERA supports women by giving them tools to help them care for their families and preserve their dignity." The distribution therefore includes 2,300 winterized dignity kits containing warm traditional clothes, underwear, and flashlights allowing women to feel safer, stay warm during winter, and meet cultural expectations.
It's worth mentioning that OCHA is a UN agency responsible for coordinating effective humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors in order to alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies.
The relief project will focus on the basic needs of Palestinian refugees from Syria during the cold winter months. ANERA is partnering with the community-based association Najdeh to distribute basic supplies for 2,300 refugee families from Syria (8,000 individuals) and their host families in Ein El Helweh and Mieh Mieh refugee camps and nearby gatherings.
The winter supplies include 5,500 quilts, 4,600 blankets, 460 gas heaters and fuel for three months, 2,300 emergency lighting lamps, 2,750 family hygiene kits, winter clothing for 900 children under five, as well as health education and winter illness educational sessions for 2,700 families.
ANERA was one of the first international organizations to survey and respond to the needs of Palestinian refugees from Syria in Lebanon. Previous grants from OCHA enabled ANERA to implement emergency relief campaigns in several refugee camps and gatherings in Tyre and Beirut.
The latest survey of refugee needs reveals that one out of two families lack heating in their dwelling, three out of four families do not have enough blankets for all family members and nine out of 10 families do not have sufficient winter clothing.
Aware that women are among the most vulnerable refugees, ANERA health program manager Dima Zayat said ANERA's programs give special attention to their needs: "As women focus on their family's well-being, they often forget about their own specific needs. Many have taken charge of their families and live in difficult conditions because they have lost their husbands or their husbands stayed behind in Syria."
Ms. Zayat added women refugees face even greater challenges. "ANERA supports women by giving them tools to help them care for their families and preserve their dignity." The distribution therefore includes 2,300 winterized dignity kits containing warm traditional clothes, underwear, and flashlights allowing women to feel safer, stay warm during winter, and meet cultural expectations.
It's worth mentioning that OCHA is a UN agency responsible for coordinating effective humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors in order to alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies.
More than 170 Syrian and Palestinian refugees held since October in Egyptian police stations were released on Tuesday and granted temporary permits to stay in Egypt, a government spokesman said. Egypt tightened its open-door visa policy for Syrians fleeing civil war soon after the military ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in a coup in July. Arrests and deportations of refugees, some of whom had not formalized their stays, followed.
The refugees released on Tuesday had been trying to leave Egypt illegally by boat when authorities detained them, according to the Egyptian authorities.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdelatty said 171 of 206 Syrian and Palestinian "illegal immigrants" had been granted three-month visas, while the cases of the remaining 35 still in detention were under review.
Authorities have apprehended about 1,500 Syrian refugees in the last few months and about 1,200 of them have been "coerced to leave", according to Human Rights Watch.
Although courts had ordered the release of all 206 Syrians and Palestinians in detention, the authorities had previously said they were still being held for immigration violations.
In one police station, dozens of refugees staged a hunger strike last month to draw attention to their plight, but called it off after 10 days.
About 300,000 of the 2.3 million refugees fleeing Syria went to Egypt, where they were received warmly during Morsi's year in office. His removal changed the atmosphere, with Egyptian media accusing Syrians and Palestinians of being Morsi supporters.
The United Nations refugee agency says Egypt has refused to let it register Palestinians from Syria as refugees and give them the yellow card that allows them temporary residence.
Tamara El Rifai of Human Rights Watch said the U.S.-based group welcomed Tuesday's release, but called for the government to allow UNHCR to register the Syrians of Palestinian origin.
"We are looking for a concerted solution between the authorities, the U.N., and other countries willing to step up," she said.
The refugees released on Tuesday had been trying to leave Egypt illegally by boat when authorities detained them, according to the Egyptian authorities.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdelatty said 171 of 206 Syrian and Palestinian "illegal immigrants" had been granted three-month visas, while the cases of the remaining 35 still in detention were under review.
Authorities have apprehended about 1,500 Syrian refugees in the last few months and about 1,200 of them have been "coerced to leave", according to Human Rights Watch.
Although courts had ordered the release of all 206 Syrians and Palestinians in detention, the authorities had previously said they were still being held for immigration violations.
In one police station, dozens of refugees staged a hunger strike last month to draw attention to their plight, but called it off after 10 days.
About 300,000 of the 2.3 million refugees fleeing Syria went to Egypt, where they were received warmly during Morsi's year in office. His removal changed the atmosphere, with Egyptian media accusing Syrians and Palestinians of being Morsi supporters.
The United Nations refugee agency says Egypt has refused to let it register Palestinians from Syria as refugees and give them the yellow card that allows them temporary residence.
Tamara El Rifai of Human Rights Watch said the U.S.-based group welcomed Tuesday's release, but called for the government to allow UNHCR to register the Syrians of Palestinian origin.
"We are looking for a concerted solution between the authorities, the U.N., and other countries willing to step up," she said.
9 dec 2013
The union of the UNRWA employees in Gaza threatened to escalate its protest steps and declare an open-ended strike if the agency persisted in ignoring the demands of its Arab staff. The union accused on Sunday the administration of UNRWA of not respecting the survey results which were announced by its committee and showed a sharp decline in the salary levels of the employees compared to 2011, stressing that the rights of UNRWA teachers can never be compromised.
The union noted that UNRWA's disregard for its employees' demands has taken place simultaneously with its recent decision to shrink its basic refugee services.
The union held UNRWA fully responsible for the repercussions for not fulfilling the needs of the refugees properly as a result of the repeated strikes, and urged it to immediately respond to its employees' demands.
The union warned that the coming days would witness escalatory steps gradually before initiating the open-ended strike, affirming that all UNRWA striking employees would suspend their work for one and a half hours next Tuesday.
The union noted that UNRWA's disregard for its employees' demands has taken place simultaneously with its recent decision to shrink its basic refugee services.
The union held UNRWA fully responsible for the repercussions for not fulfilling the needs of the refugees properly as a result of the repeated strikes, and urged it to immediately respond to its employees' demands.
The union warned that the coming days would witness escalatory steps gradually before initiating the open-ended strike, affirming that all UNRWA striking employees would suspend their work for one and a half hours next Tuesday.
7 dec 2013
The action group for the Palestinians in Syria said that four Palestinian refugees were killed by the Syrian regime during the past 24 hours. In a press release on Saturday, the group stated that three Palestinian refugees were killed on Friday afternoon by the Syrian regime forces and their militias at the main checkpoint of Al-Yarmouk refugee camp.
It added that the victims were killed when Syrian soldiers at the checkpoint attacked peaceful protestors carrying some burial shrouds to demand the Syrian regime to end its blockade on the refugee camp and recall its troops.
The group noted that other protestors were injured during the violent attack by the Syrian regime forces.
Its statement also declared the death of another Palestinian refugee named Riyadh Qasem after his exposure to excruciating torture at the hands of interrogators in a Syrian jail.
The group warned that the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian refugee camps has deteriorated very badly as a result of the tight blockade that caused an acute shortage of all vital needs.
Earlier, two Palestinian refugees were killed in the refugee camps of Al-Yarmouk and Dara according to the action group.
It said that Mahmoud Al-Refai was killed during a projectile attack on Al-Raija square in Al-Yarmouk camp and Ghassan Hammadi was shot dead by a sniper in Dara camp.
It also said that the Syrian regime forces kidnapped a Palestinian charity activist named Khaled Humaid at the checkpoint of Al-Aydoun refugee camp in Homs, adding that another young man named Ali Rafea was reported missing near Al-Neirab refugee camp in Aleppo.
80 Palestinian refugees, 35 of them from Al-Yarmouk refugee camp, were killed last November as a result of the raging conflict in Syria, according to a report released on Thursday by the action group for the Palestinians in Syria.
It added that the victims were killed when Syrian soldiers at the checkpoint attacked peaceful protestors carrying some burial shrouds to demand the Syrian regime to end its blockade on the refugee camp and recall its troops.
The group noted that other protestors were injured during the violent attack by the Syrian regime forces.
Its statement also declared the death of another Palestinian refugee named Riyadh Qasem after his exposure to excruciating torture at the hands of interrogators in a Syrian jail.
The group warned that the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian refugee camps has deteriorated very badly as a result of the tight blockade that caused an acute shortage of all vital needs.
Earlier, two Palestinian refugees were killed in the refugee camps of Al-Yarmouk and Dara according to the action group.
It said that Mahmoud Al-Refai was killed during a projectile attack on Al-Raija square in Al-Yarmouk camp and Ghassan Hammadi was shot dead by a sniper in Dara camp.
It also said that the Syrian regime forces kidnapped a Palestinian charity activist named Khaled Humaid at the checkpoint of Al-Aydoun refugee camp in Homs, adding that another young man named Ali Rafea was reported missing near Al-Neirab refugee camp in Aleppo.
80 Palestinian refugees, 35 of them from Al-Yarmouk refugee camp, were killed last November as a result of the raging conflict in Syria, according to a report released on Thursday by the action group for the Palestinians in Syria.
5 dec 2013
Friends of Humanity International (FHI) called on Egyptian authorities to stop "unfair persecution and arrest campaigns" against Syrian and Palestinian refugees fleeing from Syria to Egypt. The international organization noted that the Egyptian arrest campaign against Syria's refugees has been continuing since early July and has escalated since Sunday morning.
The Vienna-based organization stated that the raid and arrest campaigns targeted neighborhoods and buildings sheltering the refugees.
The human rights organization said that Egypt has detained nearly 1,200 refugees from Syria, including children, elderly people and women in different prisons throughout Egyptian territories suffering very poor detention conditions.
Serious violations were reported in Egyptian detention centers against the detained Palestinian and Syrian refugees including abuses, harsh treatment, harassment and insults, the organization added.
FHI documented cases of sexual harassment against Syrian and Palestinian refugees by Egyptian prison officers.
It called on Egyptian authorities to act urgently to stop such violations and to open an immediate investigation into the documented cases.
Egyptian authorities do not provide the refugees with any human basic needs including food or aid supplies offered by UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the statement affirmed.
It pointed out that 1,150 refugees were forcibly deported to Syria since early July in violation of international convention and laws.
The organization stated that Egyptian deportation policy against Palestinian and Syrian refugees came in flagrant violation of Arts. 31, 32 and 33 of the United Nations Convention of 1951 relating to the Status of Refugee that oblige the contracting states not to expel or return a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened.
FHI called on Egyptian authorities to comply with all the terms of the International Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and to open investigation into the serious violations in its prisons and detention centers against Palestinian and Syrian refugees.
The Vienna-based organization stated that the raid and arrest campaigns targeted neighborhoods and buildings sheltering the refugees.
The human rights organization said that Egypt has detained nearly 1,200 refugees from Syria, including children, elderly people and women in different prisons throughout Egyptian territories suffering very poor detention conditions.
Serious violations were reported in Egyptian detention centers against the detained Palestinian and Syrian refugees including abuses, harsh treatment, harassment and insults, the organization added.
FHI documented cases of sexual harassment against Syrian and Palestinian refugees by Egyptian prison officers.
It called on Egyptian authorities to act urgently to stop such violations and to open an immediate investigation into the documented cases.
Egyptian authorities do not provide the refugees with any human basic needs including food or aid supplies offered by UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the statement affirmed.
It pointed out that 1,150 refugees were forcibly deported to Syria since early July in violation of international convention and laws.
The organization stated that Egyptian deportation policy against Palestinian and Syrian refugees came in flagrant violation of Arts. 31, 32 and 33 of the United Nations Convention of 1951 relating to the Status of Refugee that oblige the contracting states not to expel or return a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened.
FHI called on Egyptian authorities to comply with all the terms of the International Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and to open investigation into the serious violations in its prisons and detention centers against Palestinian and Syrian refugees.
Palestinian premier Ismail Haneyya said that the Palestinian people are on the threshold of a new intifada (uprising), expressing his strong belief that its harbingers are looming on the horizon in the West Bank and Jerusalem. In remarks during his visit to the council of Shariah courts in Gaza on Wednesday, premier Haneyya stated that the Palestinian people would not yield to the Israeli attempts to change the identity of their land and holy sites.
He stressed that the Jerusalemite people defend the Aqsa Mosque on behalf of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Muslim nations, hailing their steadfastness in the face of the occupation and their success in thwarting the recent attempts by Jewish settlers to bring a candelabrum (menorah) into the Aqsa Mosque.
The premier, in another context, called on the Egyptian authorities to release the Palestinian and Syrian detainees in their prisons, reiterating that the gates of Gaza are widely open before the Syrian refugees.
The premier also hailed the Shariah judicial authority in Gaza for its accomplishments, affirming that it managed to achieve legal justice and the social security.
He added that the courts in Gaza succeeded in diminishing the divorce rate and promoting moral values among the Gazan society.
He stressed that the Jerusalemite people defend the Aqsa Mosque on behalf of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Muslim nations, hailing their steadfastness in the face of the occupation and their success in thwarting the recent attempts by Jewish settlers to bring a candelabrum (menorah) into the Aqsa Mosque.
The premier, in another context, called on the Egyptian authorities to release the Palestinian and Syrian detainees in their prisons, reiterating that the gates of Gaza are widely open before the Syrian refugees.
The premier also hailed the Shariah judicial authority in Gaza for its accomplishments, affirming that it managed to achieve legal justice and the social security.
He added that the courts in Gaza succeeded in diminishing the divorce rate and promoting moral values among the Gazan society.
4 nov 2013
Egyptian authorities launched arrest campaigns against Palestinian refugees fleeing from the ongoing conflict in Syria to Egypt over the three last days. Cairo justifies the campaigns saying that Palestinian refugees do not have residence permits in Egypt, and at the same time it refuses to grant Palestinian and Syrian refugees residence permits, one of the refugees said. Egyptian human rights sources said that this campaign has no legal basis.
The London-based Action Group for Palestinian refugees in Syria said on Tuesday that the Egyptian authorities' arrest campaign came in total violation of international laws and conventions that oblige the protection of refugees fleeing from war and seeking refuge.
It charged that the Egyptian attempt to deport Syrian and Palestinian refugees against their will back to Syria are considered a flagrant violation of the refugees’ basic human rights.
Sources said that Egypt had detained over 1,500 refugees from Syria, including at least 400 Palestinians and 250 children as young as two months old, for weeks and sometimes months. Serious violations were reported in Egyptian detention centers against the Palestinian and Syrian refugees including sexual harassment, abuses, and poor treatment.
The London-based Action Group for Palestinian refugees in Syria said on Tuesday that the Egyptian authorities' arrest campaign came in total violation of international laws and conventions that oblige the protection of refugees fleeing from war and seeking refuge.
It charged that the Egyptian attempt to deport Syrian and Palestinian refugees against their will back to Syria are considered a flagrant violation of the refugees’ basic human rights.
Sources said that Egypt had detained over 1,500 refugees from Syria, including at least 400 Palestinians and 250 children as young as two months old, for weeks and sometimes months. Serious violations were reported in Egyptian detention centers against the Palestinian and Syrian refugees including sexual harassment, abuses, and poor treatment.
Arab employees in the UN Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) in the West Bank have decided to go on strike as of Tuesday to protest the agency’s delay in meeting their demands. The union of Arab employees in UNRWA said in a statement that the strike would cover all institutions affiliated with the agency namely those of education and health in addition to services sectors in the West Bank.
The union said in a statement that the strike was in protest at the reduction of the agency’s services and aid to Palestinian refugees in the West Bank in addition to its constant threat to reduce the number of Arab employees, who are all refugees.
All UNRWA-affiliated institutions and centers were closed as of Tuesday morning in response to the strike by 5,000 workers, who stayed at home.
The union said in a statement that the strike was in protest at the reduction of the agency’s services and aid to Palestinian refugees in the West Bank in addition to its constant threat to reduce the number of Arab employees, who are all refugees.
All UNRWA-affiliated institutions and centers were closed as of Tuesday morning in response to the strike by 5,000 workers, who stayed at home.
3 dec 2013
Private sources told Hamas's Department of Refugee Affairs that UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza plans to cut food aid for more than 60 thousand refugee families in the Gaza Strip at the beginning of the next year. UNRWA, according to the sources, attributes this reduction in aid to its budget deficit, and considers that these families have exceeded the poverty line.
UNRWA had already excluded 11 thousand families of Gaza refugees of food aid for the same reasons.
Those cuts coincide with the tightening of the blockade, from which the Gaza Strip has been suffering for almost seven years, and the closure of the crossings and tunnels.
UNRWA had already excluded 11 thousand families of Gaza refugees of food aid for the same reasons.
Those cuts coincide with the tightening of the blockade, from which the Gaza Strip has been suffering for almost seven years, and the closure of the crossings and tunnels.
2 dec 2013
Palestinian activists in Syria announced that a Palestinian refugee was killed in one of the Syrian security agencies’ detention centers in Damascus. The action group for Palestinians in Syria said in a press release on Monday that Ayham Othman, a resident of Rukn Eddin suburb in Damascus, was killed under torture in Syrian prisons two months after his arrest.
The group said that the martyrdom of Othman raised the number of Palestinian refugees killed in Syria since the events started there to 1718, adding that all those killed were documented by name.
It said that the Syrian regular army was still imposing a tight siege on all refugee camps.
The group also pointed out that Palestinian refugees, who sought refuge in Qadsiya suburb in Damascus, were not treated well by the opposition’s popular committees.
It explained that a number of torture cases and kidnapping and asking for ransom were documented, adding that those committees pursued discrimination between Syrians and Palestinian refugees even in distribution of food and other rights.
The action group said that around 6,000 Palestinian refugee families had left Yarmouk and other refugee camps due to the deterioration of security conditions and sought refuge in Qadsiya.
The group said that the martyrdom of Othman raised the number of Palestinian refugees killed in Syria since the events started there to 1718, adding that all those killed were documented by name.
It said that the Syrian regular army was still imposing a tight siege on all refugee camps.
The group also pointed out that Palestinian refugees, who sought refuge in Qadsiya suburb in Damascus, were not treated well by the opposition’s popular committees.
It explained that a number of torture cases and kidnapping and asking for ransom were documented, adding that those committees pursued discrimination between Syrians and Palestinian refugees even in distribution of food and other rights.
The action group said that around 6,000 Palestinian refugee families had left Yarmouk and other refugee camps due to the deterioration of security conditions and sought refuge in Qadsiya.
1 dec 2013
A visitor looks at photographs displayed during an exhibition organised by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and titled "The Long Journey", on display in in the Old City of Jerusalem, on November 28, 2013
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UNRWA Archives/AFP/ A file picture released on November 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) shows Palestinians at the Baqa'a refugee camp, north of the Jordanian capital Amman in 1970
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A file picture released on Nov 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) shows Palestinans carrying their belongings as they cross a bridge at the Baqa'a refugee camp, north of the Jordanian capital Amman, in 1970
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The UN agency for Palestinian refugees has unveiled a trove of pictures and film captured over more than 60 years chronicling the collective memory of those who fled or were forced into exile. Established in 1949 to help Palestinian refugees who lost their homes when the state of Israel was created a year earlier, UNRWA has digitised the archive and put it on display in east Jerusalem.
More than half a million negatives, prints, slides, films and videocassettes collected by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency show men, women and children eking out new lives in refugee camps across the Middle East. Called "The Long Journey," a collection of the works has been on display at the Al-Ma'mal Centre in east Jerusalem since Thursday. "This project is important for the history of Palestine and Palestinians, in order to defend and preserve their identity," UNRWA commissioner general Filipo Grandi said at the launch of the exhibit. "It is a contribution for building a national heritage" and "a beautiful project to help the Palestinian diaspora to preserve their identity." |
Former UNRWA filmmaker and photographer George Nehmeh contributed over the years countless pictures and videos of refugees and landscape, some of which no longer exists.
A file picture released on November 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) s …
Nehmeh, a Lebanese, prepared a special documentary for the exhibit, in which he says "each frame is a snapshot of history that is indelibly part of the Middle East."
At the onset of the 1970s Nehmeh took pictures of refugees in the Gaza Strip's Khan Yunis camp and the Baqaa camp just outside Amman.
Forty years later he went back in search of some of them.
A skeletal, dehydrated year-old baby he once photographed clutching his mother is now a father of five, and the documentary shows Nehmeh reunited with him in Gaza.
Another snapshots shows a couple who have fled Jericho after the 1967 Six Day War to the misery of a refugee camp. Now they proudly boast 70 to 80 grandchildren and great grandchildren.
UNRWA is estimated to care for about five million Palestinian refugees in impoverished camps in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Jordan and now war-hit Syria.
A file picture released on November 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) s …
Because of its historical and cultural significance, the archive has been inscribed UNESCO'S "Memory of the World" list since 2009.
Grandi said UNRWA chose to digitise its Palestinian archive because it was "literally decaying" and the task is being undertaken by young students in Amman and in Gaza.
Denmark and France have provided technical assistance, and Palestinians have privately provided funds for the mammoth project.
The question of Palestinian refugees is among the main stumbling blocs between Israel and the Palestinians, including the status of Jerusalem, the borders and Jewish settlement constructions.
Palestinians insist the refugee issue be resolved on the basis of UN Resolution 194, which defines principles for their "right of return."
During a visit to the West Bank headquarters of the Palestinian leadership earlier this month, French President Francois Hollande called for a "realistic solution" to the refugees problem.
At the opening of the exhibit, PLO executive board member Hanan Ashrawi said: "The issue of the refugees is crucial. It is such an essential embodiment of all Palestinian issues.
"The refugees must have the right to choose (to return) and the recognition by Israel of its guilt and of our narrative and their rights".
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said the Jewish state is opposed to the return of the refugees and their descendents.
A file picture released on November 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) s …
Nehmeh, a Lebanese, prepared a special documentary for the exhibit, in which he says "each frame is a snapshot of history that is indelibly part of the Middle East."
At the onset of the 1970s Nehmeh took pictures of refugees in the Gaza Strip's Khan Yunis camp and the Baqaa camp just outside Amman.
Forty years later he went back in search of some of them.
A skeletal, dehydrated year-old baby he once photographed clutching his mother is now a father of five, and the documentary shows Nehmeh reunited with him in Gaza.
Another snapshots shows a couple who have fled Jericho after the 1967 Six Day War to the misery of a refugee camp. Now they proudly boast 70 to 80 grandchildren and great grandchildren.
UNRWA is estimated to care for about five million Palestinian refugees in impoverished camps in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Jordan and now war-hit Syria.
A file picture released on November 28, 2013 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) s …
Because of its historical and cultural significance, the archive has been inscribed UNESCO'S "Memory of the World" list since 2009.
Grandi said UNRWA chose to digitise its Palestinian archive because it was "literally decaying" and the task is being undertaken by young students in Amman and in Gaza.
Denmark and France have provided technical assistance, and Palestinians have privately provided funds for the mammoth project.
The question of Palestinian refugees is among the main stumbling blocs between Israel and the Palestinians, including the status of Jerusalem, the borders and Jewish settlement constructions.
Palestinians insist the refugee issue be resolved on the basis of UN Resolution 194, which defines principles for their "right of return."
During a visit to the West Bank headquarters of the Palestinian leadership earlier this month, French President Francois Hollande called for a "realistic solution" to the refugees problem.
At the opening of the exhibit, PLO executive board member Hanan Ashrawi said: "The issue of the refugees is crucial. It is such an essential embodiment of all Palestinian issues.
"The refugees must have the right to choose (to return) and the recognition by Israel of its guilt and of our narrative and their rights".
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said the Jewish state is opposed to the return of the refugees and their descendents.
Dozens of Palestinian and Syrian refugees crammed inside a room at Egyptian detention center
52 Palestinian and Syrian refugees, who fled the Syrian war to Egypt, entered on Saturday their ninth day of hunger strike in the prison of the Montaza police station in the Egyptian city of Alexandria.
The hunger strikers aim to demand the European states to receive them and secure decent lives for their children.
Spokesman for the hunger strikers Abu Alaa Hafyan told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that the Palestinians and Syrians fleeing the Syrian war are not treated as refugees by the Egyptian authorities and instead they are exposed to detention and maltreatment.
Hafyan affirmed that all the refugees in the Montaza police station suffer along with their families from bad incarceration conditions.
"We are enduring a tragic situation. There are children, women and elders with us. Since last September 17, or 78 days, we have been suffering from alienation and deprivation, the alienation of being displaced from our homes in Syria and the status of being deprived of everything in Egypt," the spokesman of the hunger strikers affirmed.
He said that the detainees in this prison started their hunger strike nine days ago to urge the European countries, which recently declared their readiness to receive them along with their families, to immediately translate their words into action.
52 Palestinian and Syrian refugees, who fled the Syrian war to Egypt, entered on Saturday their ninth day of hunger strike in the prison of the Montaza police station in the Egyptian city of Alexandria.
The hunger strikers aim to demand the European states to receive them and secure decent lives for their children.
Spokesman for the hunger strikers Abu Alaa Hafyan told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that the Palestinians and Syrians fleeing the Syrian war are not treated as refugees by the Egyptian authorities and instead they are exposed to detention and maltreatment.
Hafyan affirmed that all the refugees in the Montaza police station suffer along with their families from bad incarceration conditions.
"We are enduring a tragic situation. There are children, women and elders with us. Since last September 17, or 78 days, we have been suffering from alienation and deprivation, the alienation of being displaced from our homes in Syria and the status of being deprived of everything in Egypt," the spokesman of the hunger strikers affirmed.
He said that the detainees in this prison started their hunger strike nine days ago to urge the European countries, which recently declared their readiness to receive them along with their families, to immediately translate their words into action.
Member of Hamas's political bureau Ezzat Resheq asked the Egyptian authorities to clarify the news stories about cases of sexual harassment against Palestinian and Syrian refugee women detained in Egyptian jails. Resheq called in a press statement on Sunday for the release of all Palestinian and Syrian detainees in Egypt, and asked Cairo "to investigate and to hold accountable all those involved in the crime of harassment against refugee women in the Egyptian prisons."
In another incident involving refugees, Palestinian activists in Syria said that four Palestinian refugees in the Yarmouk Camp (south of the capital Damascus) were killed in shelling targeting the camp for several months.
Action group for Palestinians in Syria said in a press release on Saturday that Ahmed Ouda from the Yarmouk refugee camp was shot dead on Friday night during his participation in a march calling for lifting the blockade imposed by the regular army on the camp.
It added that Muhammad Tanatrah was also killed by mortar fire that targeted the Maskiya neighborhood, while another young man died of wounds sustained a few days ago, in light of the absence of necessary medical care.
The group pointed out that a fourth Palestinian youth died on Friday night from wounds sustained in the bombing that targeted the neighborhood of al-Hajar al-Aswad adjacent to the Yarmouk camp.
In another incident involving refugees, Palestinian activists in Syria said that four Palestinian refugees in the Yarmouk Camp (south of the capital Damascus) were killed in shelling targeting the camp for several months.
Action group for Palestinians in Syria said in a press release on Saturday that Ahmed Ouda from the Yarmouk refugee camp was shot dead on Friday night during his participation in a march calling for lifting the blockade imposed by the regular army on the camp.
It added that Muhammad Tanatrah was also killed by mortar fire that targeted the Maskiya neighborhood, while another young man died of wounds sustained a few days ago, in light of the absence of necessary medical care.
The group pointed out that a fourth Palestinian youth died on Friday night from wounds sustained in the bombing that targeted the neighborhood of al-Hajar al-Aswad adjacent to the Yarmouk camp.
29 nov 2013
Hamas movement called on all Palestinian factions, leaders, intellectuals and students and all the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank and in the Diaspora to sign a document that stresses the adherence to the constants.
This came during a press conference held by Hamas's Department of Refugee Affairs on Thursday in Gaza City to announce a campaign to collect signatures on a document that stresses on the adherence to Palestinian national rights, on the 66th anniversary of the decision to partition Palestine (Resolution 181) issued by the General Assembly of the United Nations, and which falls on Friday November 29.
Head of the department Dr. Essam Adwan explained during the conference that a group of academics, intellectuals and politicians oversaw the drafting of the document, noting that they have been able to collect nearly 250 thousands signatures in the Gaza Strip.
Adwan confirmed that this campaign will continue and stressed on Hamas's adherence to Palestinian rights and its rejection of the decision to partition Palestine.
The document asserts that Palestine has an area of 27,027 km2, and that no one has the right to waiver any part of it. It also stresses that liberating Palestine is a duty of all Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims and the free world people.
The document stressed that all Palestinian refugees have the right to return to their original homes in Palestine from which they were forcibly displaced without conditions, and that it is their right to get compensations for their suffering and their damaged properties.
It also stressed that Jerusalem is part of Palestine, and that no one has the right to give it up, and considered that the Israeli occupation is the only enemy of the Palestinian people, and that resisting it with every means is a national duty until the liberation of all the Palestinian territories.
This came during a press conference held by Hamas's Department of Refugee Affairs on Thursday in Gaza City to announce a campaign to collect signatures on a document that stresses on the adherence to Palestinian national rights, on the 66th anniversary of the decision to partition Palestine (Resolution 181) issued by the General Assembly of the United Nations, and which falls on Friday November 29.
Head of the department Dr. Essam Adwan explained during the conference that a group of academics, intellectuals and politicians oversaw the drafting of the document, noting that they have been able to collect nearly 250 thousands signatures in the Gaza Strip.
Adwan confirmed that this campaign will continue and stressed on Hamas's adherence to Palestinian rights and its rejection of the decision to partition Palestine.
The document asserts that Palestine has an area of 27,027 km2, and that no one has the right to waiver any part of it. It also stresses that liberating Palestine is a duty of all Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims and the free world people.
The document stressed that all Palestinian refugees have the right to return to their original homes in Palestine from which they were forcibly displaced without conditions, and that it is their right to get compensations for their suffering and their damaged properties.
It also stressed that Jerusalem is part of Palestine, and that no one has the right to give it up, and considered that the Israeli occupation is the only enemy of the Palestinian people, and that resisting it with every means is a national duty until the liberation of all the Palestinian territories.
28 nov 2013
Refugees from Syria sleeping on the floor at Montaza 2nd police detention center in Alexandria
The action group for the Palestinians in Syria strongly denounced what it described as the serious violations that are committed by Egyptian jailers against many Palestinian women who fled to Egypt from the war-torn Syria and were kidnapped and jailed by the Egyptian security apparatuses.
In a report, the group affirmed that all the Palestinian female detainees in Egypt are exposed to systematic sexual harassment by Egyptian prison officers and jailers.
The group added that the Palestinian refugees in Egypt's jails are being held under inhumane incarceration conditions, and exposed to excruciating torture and maltreatment.
The group slammed the Palestinian Authority embassy in Cairo for ignoring the issue of about 296 Palestinian refugees who were arrested by the Egyptian security apparatuses after they took refuge in the Egyptian territories from the war raging in Syria.
The group said that the PA's indifference to the affairs of its citizens in Egypt confirmed further its keenness on its own interests with the Egyptian military regime over the interests of its people and their suffering.
The group appealed to the international community to open an investigation into the exposure of Palestinian refugees to sexual harassment and torture in Egyptian jails, and held the UN high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) responsible for the international silence on the reported violations committed against the Palestinians in Egypt.
For his part, member of Hamas's political bureau Mousa Abu Marzouk strongly criticized the persistent Egyptian media incitement against his Movement and the Palestinians and described it as reprehensible and unjustified.
"What could be possibly achieved from such incitement and repeated fabrications against Hamas and the Gaza Strip," Abu Marzouk said on his facebook page on Wednesday.
He stressed that accusing Hamas and the Palestinians of carrying out terrorist attacks in Egypt is unjustified incitement against them, affirming that all the accusations made by the Egyptian media against the Palestinians are sheer lies.
The action group for the Palestinians in Syria strongly denounced what it described as the serious violations that are committed by Egyptian jailers against many Palestinian women who fled to Egypt from the war-torn Syria and were kidnapped and jailed by the Egyptian security apparatuses.
In a report, the group affirmed that all the Palestinian female detainees in Egypt are exposed to systematic sexual harassment by Egyptian prison officers and jailers.
The group added that the Palestinian refugees in Egypt's jails are being held under inhumane incarceration conditions, and exposed to excruciating torture and maltreatment.
The group slammed the Palestinian Authority embassy in Cairo for ignoring the issue of about 296 Palestinian refugees who were arrested by the Egyptian security apparatuses after they took refuge in the Egyptian territories from the war raging in Syria.
The group said that the PA's indifference to the affairs of its citizens in Egypt confirmed further its keenness on its own interests with the Egyptian military regime over the interests of its people and their suffering.
The group appealed to the international community to open an investigation into the exposure of Palestinian refugees to sexual harassment and torture in Egyptian jails, and held the UN high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) responsible for the international silence on the reported violations committed against the Palestinians in Egypt.
For his part, member of Hamas's political bureau Mousa Abu Marzouk strongly criticized the persistent Egyptian media incitement against his Movement and the Palestinians and described it as reprehensible and unjustified.
"What could be possibly achieved from such incitement and repeated fabrications against Hamas and the Gaza Strip," Abu Marzouk said on his facebook page on Wednesday.
He stressed that accusing Hamas and the Palestinians of carrying out terrorist attacks in Egypt is unjustified incitement against them, affirming that all the accusations made by the Egyptian media against the Palestinians are sheer lies.
23 nov 2013
Palestinian refugee family drowned off Greece coasts while trying to reach Europe after fleeing from the ongoing events in Syria, Action Group for Palestinian Refugee in Syria revealed. In its statement issued Saturday, the Action Group documented the death of six members of one Palestinian family on the 14th of November off Greece after fleeing from the Syrian conflict, pointing out that they were buried in a cemetery northern Greece.
In a related incident, the Action Group reported the martyrdom of Palestinian refugee Mohammed Mohawesh and the injury of many others on Friday due to repeated shelling targeting Dar'aa refugee camp in Syria.
A state of calm has prevailed in Palestinian refugee camps in Syria particularly Yarmouk refugee camp in which Palestinian refugees have marched after Friday prayers demanding an end to the tight siege imposed on the camp for 130 days.
A boat carrying Syrian and Palestinian refugees capsized off Italy after a Libyan military vessel fired on them as it left Libya on the 11th of October, leaving more than 200 victims among the refugees.
In a related incident, the Action Group reported the martyrdom of Palestinian refugee Mohammed Mohawesh and the injury of many others on Friday due to repeated shelling targeting Dar'aa refugee camp in Syria.
A state of calm has prevailed in Palestinian refugee camps in Syria particularly Yarmouk refugee camp in which Palestinian refugees have marched after Friday prayers demanding an end to the tight siege imposed on the camp for 130 days.
A boat carrying Syrian and Palestinian refugees capsized off Italy after a Libyan military vessel fired on them as it left Libya on the 11th of October, leaving more than 200 victims among the refugees.
22 nov 2013
The workers' union at the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA in Gaza started its first protest steps, demanding the agency to guarantee the workers' rights. These steps were launched on Thursday when members of the General Assembly of the Union of Arab employees organized a vigil in front of the office of the Director of UNRWA Operations in Gaza.
The Union demanded in a statement the UNRWA Management to be committed to the results of the surveys, and increase all the workers' salaries in order to improve the livelihoods of UNRWA workers, in light of the difficult economic conditions.
The statement said: "We have been contacting the agency's management for the implementation of this just demand, but unfortunately we have not received a positive reply. We have been informed that if there are salary increases, they will only be offered to some colleagues and that the UNRWA is fiscally strapped."
The protesters reviewed their first steps to halt the work in protest of the low salaries, and asserted that they will not give up their rights.
The Union demanded in a statement the UNRWA Management to be committed to the results of the surveys, and increase all the workers' salaries in order to improve the livelihoods of UNRWA workers, in light of the difficult economic conditions.
The statement said: "We have been contacting the agency's management for the implementation of this just demand, but unfortunately we have not received a positive reply. We have been informed that if there are salary increases, they will only be offered to some colleagues and that the UNRWA is fiscally strapped."
The protesters reviewed their first steps to halt the work in protest of the low salaries, and asserted that they will not give up their rights.
