3 oct 2015
By Hossam Shaker
Students arriving at the school gates to find them closed in accordance with instructions from the United Nations – a scenario that was very close to happening at the beginning of the current school year, remedied at the last minute by individuals within the international committees.
The background to this incident is the fact that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has been complaining that the international community does not uphold their financial obligations, resulting in a suffocating debt crisis that almost caused the closure of the network of schools managed by the agency in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan for over 60 years, as well as a number of other austerity measures. Preparations were made to postpone the school year and to keep students stuck in the alleyways of their miserable camps spread across the four countries. The parents were told at the last minute that the shocking decision had been reconsidered, but UNRWA has said they cannot guarantee another academic year for the children until further notice.
Can this be any more absurd? The scandal occurred with almost no noise or objection, even though disabling UNRWA would ignite an immediate humanitarian, social and economic crisis amongst the Palestinian refugee community, which is already at breaking point in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria.
UNRWA is one of the most important operators of the Palestinian work force and provides various vital educational, professional, health and relief services to five million refugees whose land, homes and resources were stolen from them by the Israeli occupation authorities. I must clearly state that what happened earlier this year was a heinous manipulation of an entire nation’s morale, which, in any case, threatens to blow up the entire Palestinian community from within. Let us imagine that this were to happen in beautiful Switzerland, the country of UN Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl, and that his three sons could not attend school because international powers are simply unwilling to pay for this basic right. It would be nothing short of a scandal.
However, who really believes that the international community is unable to resolve a financial crisis similar to the one suffered by one of its agencies? How could the UN and the Bretton Woods institutions push generations of Palestinians into a quagmire of programmed ignorance and rampant diseases in such a blatant manner? Don’t these risks mean that the fate of the Palestinians is to face more hopelessness and discouragement, and won’t such circumstances simply push Palestinian refugees to undertake dangerous journeys in search of the necessities of life?
Because the international community does not care about moral urges, a Palestinian documentary team produced a short film explaining the story. In the film, a student leaves his home in the refugee camp and heads to school; he finds the door closed, painted with the UN colours and a sign that says the school was closed down due to a financial deficit. The story does not end here; the student’s shock leads him to a four-wheel drive driven by masked individuals who take him on an unknown suicide mission. The film’s message is clear: the inability of the international community to commit to its obligations to UNRWA will push generations of Palestinians into the lure of armed extremism. This film is very clever because it appeals to the international community with what it understands.
The dilemma is not in the ignorance and impoverishment of generations of Palestinians, rather in terrorism and extremism and the fact that these issues are the single priority for the international agenda in this part of the world, over and above simple human rights.
The article was first published in the Middle East Monitor website.
Students arriving at the school gates to find them closed in accordance with instructions from the United Nations – a scenario that was very close to happening at the beginning of the current school year, remedied at the last minute by individuals within the international committees.
The background to this incident is the fact that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has been complaining that the international community does not uphold their financial obligations, resulting in a suffocating debt crisis that almost caused the closure of the network of schools managed by the agency in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan for over 60 years, as well as a number of other austerity measures. Preparations were made to postpone the school year and to keep students stuck in the alleyways of their miserable camps spread across the four countries. The parents were told at the last minute that the shocking decision had been reconsidered, but UNRWA has said they cannot guarantee another academic year for the children until further notice.
Can this be any more absurd? The scandal occurred with almost no noise or objection, even though disabling UNRWA would ignite an immediate humanitarian, social and economic crisis amongst the Palestinian refugee community, which is already at breaking point in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria.
UNRWA is one of the most important operators of the Palestinian work force and provides various vital educational, professional, health and relief services to five million refugees whose land, homes and resources were stolen from them by the Israeli occupation authorities. I must clearly state that what happened earlier this year was a heinous manipulation of an entire nation’s morale, which, in any case, threatens to blow up the entire Palestinian community from within. Let us imagine that this were to happen in beautiful Switzerland, the country of UN Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl, and that his three sons could not attend school because international powers are simply unwilling to pay for this basic right. It would be nothing short of a scandal.
However, who really believes that the international community is unable to resolve a financial crisis similar to the one suffered by one of its agencies? How could the UN and the Bretton Woods institutions push generations of Palestinians into a quagmire of programmed ignorance and rampant diseases in such a blatant manner? Don’t these risks mean that the fate of the Palestinians is to face more hopelessness and discouragement, and won’t such circumstances simply push Palestinian refugees to undertake dangerous journeys in search of the necessities of life?
Because the international community does not care about moral urges, a Palestinian documentary team produced a short film explaining the story. In the film, a student leaves his home in the refugee camp and heads to school; he finds the door closed, painted with the UN colours and a sign that says the school was closed down due to a financial deficit. The story does not end here; the student’s shock leads him to a four-wheel drive driven by masked individuals who take him on an unknown suicide mission. The film’s message is clear: the inability of the international community to commit to its obligations to UNRWA will push generations of Palestinians into the lure of armed extremism. This film is very clever because it appeals to the international community with what it understands.
The dilemma is not in the ignorance and impoverishment of generations of Palestinians, rather in terrorism and extremism and the fact that these issues are the single priority for the international agenda in this part of the world, over and above simple human rights.
The article was first published in the Middle East Monitor website.
2 oct 2015
Information Division of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces arrested 40 Palestinian Syrian refugees including women and children on Wednesday.
A report issued by Action Group for Palestinians of Syria revealed that the Lebanese security forces arrested 40 Palestinian Syrians while trying to leave the port city of Tripoli by sea through a boat illegally to Turkey and then to European countries.
In a telephone interview, Dr. Mahmoud Hanafi, head of the Palestinian human rights institution "Shahid," confirmed to the AGPS correspondent in Lebanon that the institution is following the situation of Palestinian refugee detainees closely.
He said: "The Lebanese authorities promised not to hand over anyone of them to the Syrian authorities, adding that the Lebanese General Security in such cases needs to take legal procedures to know the details of the case and access to the smuggler who arranged the trip.
He noted that the detainees will be released immediately upon completion of those procedures, which lasts between two to three days.
It is noteworthy that the Palestinians of Syria in Lebanon suffer miserable living and legal conditions in Lebanon, pushing them to find ways to escape after fleeing from the ravages of the Syrian war, as they are about 45,000 refugees.
A report issued by Action Group for Palestinians of Syria revealed that the Lebanese security forces arrested 40 Palestinian Syrians while trying to leave the port city of Tripoli by sea through a boat illegally to Turkey and then to European countries.
In a telephone interview, Dr. Mahmoud Hanafi, head of the Palestinian human rights institution "Shahid," confirmed to the AGPS correspondent in Lebanon that the institution is following the situation of Palestinian refugee detainees closely.
He said: "The Lebanese authorities promised not to hand over anyone of them to the Syrian authorities, adding that the Lebanese General Security in such cases needs to take legal procedures to know the details of the case and access to the smuggler who arranged the trip.
He noted that the detainees will be released immediately upon completion of those procedures, which lasts between two to three days.
It is noteworthy that the Palestinians of Syria in Lebanon suffer miserable living and legal conditions in Lebanon, pushing them to find ways to escape after fleeing from the ravages of the Syrian war, as they are about 45,000 refugees.
29 sept 2015
A UN report issued by the World Bank revealed on Tuesday that Palestinians have been getting poorer over the past three years.
The report stated that the decline in aid from donor countries, last year’s war in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli freeze of tax revenues due to the Palestinian Authority during the first trimester of this year have caused severe damage to the Palestinian economy.
According to the report, the Palestinians have been getting poorer over the past three years as a result of the political, security, economic and social conditions imposed on them.
The World Bank report will be presented this week to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC). It recommends reforms to the current general economic trends to halt further deterioration in the economy.
The report pointed out that a quarter of the Palestinians are living under poverty conditions while the unemployment rate in the Gaza Strip exceeded the barrier of 60 per cent. Real GDP per capita has been shrinking since 2013 due to the weak economy in the Palestinian territories, the report added.
The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said that the unemployment rate in the Palestinian territories as a whole is nearly 25 per cent. The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, meanwhile, revealed that 72 per cent of Gaza's population suffers from food insecurity.
The report also recommends the Palestinian Authority to make further efforts to improve tax collection and continue to push towards reforms in the health and electricity sectors.
The report stated that the decline in aid from donor countries, last year’s war in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli freeze of tax revenues due to the Palestinian Authority during the first trimester of this year have caused severe damage to the Palestinian economy.
According to the report, the Palestinians have been getting poorer over the past three years as a result of the political, security, economic and social conditions imposed on them.
The World Bank report will be presented this week to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC). It recommends reforms to the current general economic trends to halt further deterioration in the economy.
The report pointed out that a quarter of the Palestinians are living under poverty conditions while the unemployment rate in the Gaza Strip exceeded the barrier of 60 per cent. Real GDP per capita has been shrinking since 2013 due to the weak economy in the Palestinian territories, the report added.
The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said that the unemployment rate in the Palestinian territories as a whole is nearly 25 per cent. The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, meanwhile, revealed that 72 per cent of Gaza's population suffers from food insecurity.
The report also recommends the Palestinian Authority to make further efforts to improve tax collection and continue to push towards reforms in the health and electricity sectors.
Along with thousands of Syrian refugees in “Derek” Turkish Camp on the Syrian-Turkish borders, 22 Palestinian families are facing harsh conditions.The prison-like camp is surrounded with barbed wires. Getting out of it requires a security approval, or what Palestinian refugees now call 'a permit'.
Harsh conditions
Palestinian refugees explained the hard conditions they are facing, especially getting food whose costs are high compared to the prices outside the camp.
Sa'ad, a Palestinian refugee in the camp, said that the Kurdish camp management provides a monthly payment of 80 Turkish Liras per person, around 3 Liras a day. This, as he explained, can hardly meet the daily basic necessities.
According to Sa'ad, the contaminated water well has caused inflammatory bowel to many refugees, as this water is used for both drinking and washing. The camp management, however, does not provide the camp with drinking water, even though it has drinking water reservoirs.
The camp tents are hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Furthermore, poor hygiene has caused the spread of infectious skin diseases, especially because of the camp's toilets that are unfit for human use.
Movement restrictions
The refugees' bad living conditions include the restriction imposed on their movement in and out. The camp management gives them short permits –hours or a day– to leave the camp, and if a refugee is late, they will have to spend the night in the open air.
There are 104 Palestinian refugees, 10 of whom are women without a breadwinner, 15 families with five or less members, 7 families with six or more members, and 5 families without any means of communication.
Medical negligence
There is no appropriate medical care for the refugees. A number of refugees need medicine, including a little boy who needs a surgery in the head and a woman with Thalassemia who hasn't got blood transfusion for seven months.
The camp's 60 children are the most affected. A child died due to severe fever. Dozens of children have been psychologically affected.
Educationally speaking, the refugees confirmed there are no schools in the camp. They expressed concern about their children's future if they remain in the prison-like Derek camp.
A journey of suffering
Before moving to "Derek" camp in March, the Palestinian families used to live in an accommodation center in Kilis. Al-Wafaa Campaign provided the center with humanitarian aid and pledged to manage the camp and pay the rent for the land on which the center was established.
Nonetheless, the center was soon closed due to the lack of financial support, a pretext denied by the al-Wafaa Campaign. Consequently, some refugees rented houses in Kilis, and the rest were moved to "Derek" camp.
Failure of the PA embassy
The refugees criticized the Palestinian embassy for standing idly by, especially not issuing them passports. It is quite hard for the refugees to get passports as it requires a seven-hour travel to Ankara, in addition to €50.
Refugees also blamed the UNHCR, the UN's refugee agency, for "turning a deaf ear to the refugees' suffering in the camp."
Demands
The refugees demand the Palestinian officials in Turkey, represented by the Palestinian Embassy and GAPAR, to ensure them a dignified life with better living, medical, and educational conditions in accommodation centers in Turkey.
They also confirmed the need for free-of-charge passports from the Palestinian Embassy for all the refugees.
Furthermore, they asked the Palestinian committees and associations in Turkey to visit the camp to have a closer look at the conditions there and to provide humanitarian and psychological help.
Harsh conditions
Palestinian refugees explained the hard conditions they are facing, especially getting food whose costs are high compared to the prices outside the camp.
Sa'ad, a Palestinian refugee in the camp, said that the Kurdish camp management provides a monthly payment of 80 Turkish Liras per person, around 3 Liras a day. This, as he explained, can hardly meet the daily basic necessities.
According to Sa'ad, the contaminated water well has caused inflammatory bowel to many refugees, as this water is used for both drinking and washing. The camp management, however, does not provide the camp with drinking water, even though it has drinking water reservoirs.
The camp tents are hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Furthermore, poor hygiene has caused the spread of infectious skin diseases, especially because of the camp's toilets that are unfit for human use.
Movement restrictions
The refugees' bad living conditions include the restriction imposed on their movement in and out. The camp management gives them short permits –hours or a day– to leave the camp, and if a refugee is late, they will have to spend the night in the open air.
There are 104 Palestinian refugees, 10 of whom are women without a breadwinner, 15 families with five or less members, 7 families with six or more members, and 5 families without any means of communication.
Medical negligence
There is no appropriate medical care for the refugees. A number of refugees need medicine, including a little boy who needs a surgery in the head and a woman with Thalassemia who hasn't got blood transfusion for seven months.
The camp's 60 children are the most affected. A child died due to severe fever. Dozens of children have been psychologically affected.
Educationally speaking, the refugees confirmed there are no schools in the camp. They expressed concern about their children's future if they remain in the prison-like Derek camp.
A journey of suffering
Before moving to "Derek" camp in March, the Palestinian families used to live in an accommodation center in Kilis. Al-Wafaa Campaign provided the center with humanitarian aid and pledged to manage the camp and pay the rent for the land on which the center was established.
Nonetheless, the center was soon closed due to the lack of financial support, a pretext denied by the al-Wafaa Campaign. Consequently, some refugees rented houses in Kilis, and the rest were moved to "Derek" camp.
Failure of the PA embassy
The refugees criticized the Palestinian embassy for standing idly by, especially not issuing them passports. It is quite hard for the refugees to get passports as it requires a seven-hour travel to Ankara, in addition to €50.
Refugees also blamed the UNHCR, the UN's refugee agency, for "turning a deaf ear to the refugees' suffering in the camp."
Demands
The refugees demand the Palestinian officials in Turkey, represented by the Palestinian Embassy and GAPAR, to ensure them a dignified life with better living, medical, and educational conditions in accommodation centers in Turkey.
They also confirmed the need for free-of-charge passports from the Palestinian Embassy for all the refugees.
Furthermore, they asked the Palestinian committees and associations in Turkey to visit the camp to have a closer look at the conditions there and to provide humanitarian and psychological help.
Head of the Palestinian Return Center (PRC) Majed al-Zeer called for re-tabling and solving the Palestinian refugees’ issue on the basis of the international resolutions and laws.
In his speech at the 30th regular session of the UN Human Rights Council, al-Zeer stressed that the right of return is granted by the universal declaration for human rights that states that “everyone has the right to leave any country and to return to it.”
The most appropriate remedy to the Palestinian refugee problem is the implementation of their right to return, he said.
Al-Zeer pointed to the UNRWA crisis, saying that it is a political issue par excellence. “Israel has to uphold its legal, moral and political obligations towards the Palestinian people,” he continued.
The UN Human Rights Council held Monday morning a general debate on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, and concluded its general debate on the Universal Periodic Review mechanism.
In July 2015, the PRC was granted the ECOSOC NGO consultative status. Human rights activists consider the outcome as a historic, strategic, and positive victory for the Palestinian people and their right of return.
In his speech at the 30th regular session of the UN Human Rights Council, al-Zeer stressed that the right of return is granted by the universal declaration for human rights that states that “everyone has the right to leave any country and to return to it.”
The most appropriate remedy to the Palestinian refugee problem is the implementation of their right to return, he said.
Al-Zeer pointed to the UNRWA crisis, saying that it is a political issue par excellence. “Israel has to uphold its legal, moral and political obligations towards the Palestinian people,” he continued.
The UN Human Rights Council held Monday morning a general debate on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, and concluded its general debate on the Universal Periodic Review mechanism.
In July 2015, the PRC was granted the ECOSOC NGO consultative status. Human rights activists consider the outcome as a historic, strategic, and positive victory for the Palestinian people and their right of return.
23 sept 2015
UNRWA’s media consultant Adnan Abu Hasna said UNRWA has got the funding of the construction of 1150 of the houses completely damaged in 2014 summer’s Israeli aggression on the blockaded enclave.
The house list will be released within the next weeks. Meanwhile, 165 houses are being reconstructed.
Abu Hasna said, in a statement on Tuesday, UNRWA renovated over 66,000 houses of the partially destroyed. While, 9000 homes are under construction and 56,000 others await being funded.
He pointed out that 430 of the greatly damaged houses have been accomplished whereas 2000 houses are being renovated and 6500 homes require funding.
Abu Hasna underlined that great efforts have been exerted in this regard, but the reconstruction process goes very slowly and suffers severe lack of funding. It got only 30% out of $724 million which was determined at the reconstruction conference in Cairo.
The house list will be released within the next weeks. Meanwhile, 165 houses are being reconstructed.
Abu Hasna said, in a statement on Tuesday, UNRWA renovated over 66,000 houses of the partially destroyed. While, 9000 homes are under construction and 56,000 others await being funded.
He pointed out that 430 of the greatly damaged houses have been accomplished whereas 2000 houses are being renovated and 6500 homes require funding.
Abu Hasna underlined that great efforts have been exerted in this regard, but the reconstruction process goes very slowly and suffers severe lack of funding. It got only 30% out of $724 million which was determined at the reconstruction conference in Cairo.
File picture shows Aeham al-Ahmad, a former resident of Damascus' Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp, playing the piano in the street.
Three years of siege, famine and bombing of his Damascus refugee camp didn't kill celebrated Palestinian musician Aeham al-Ahmad, but something died inside him the day militants burnt his beloved piano in front of his eyes.
It was then that Ahmad, whose music had brought consolation, even a bit of joy, to Yarmouk camp's beleaguered residents, decided to join thousands of others and seek refuge in Europe.
"They burned it in April, on my birthday. It was my most cherished possession," Ahmad said. "The piano wasn't just an instrument. It was like the death of a friend."
For 27-year-old Ahmad, whose songs of hope amid the rubble of Syria's largest Palestinian camp became a social media sensation last year, "it was a very painful moment."
Since Syria's civil war struck Yarmouk in 2013, the once-thriving neighborhood saw its population dwindle from as many as 160,000 Palestinians and Syrians to barely 18,000 people.
The camp was caught up in fighting among government forces and militants and suffered a devastating siege by the Syrian army. About 200 people died from malnutrition and a lack of medicines.
Ahmad became a symbol of hope, helping Yarmouk's people -- particularly its children -- forget for a moment the brutal war raging around them with every note he played.
"The days when I felt the most helpless were when I had money, but I could not get milk for my year-old baby Kinan, or when my older son Ahmad would ask me for a biscuit," he said. "It was the worst feeling."
But after Islamic State group militants attacked the camp in April, Ahmad's gentle, tentative ray of light was engulfed in flames.
He was in a pickup truck, trying to move his piano to nearby Yalda, where his wife and two boys were living, when he was stopped at a militant checkpoint.
"Don't you know that music is haram (forbidden by Islam)," a gunman asked, before torching his beloved instrument.
'Children cried from hunger'
Ahmad had stayed in Yarmouk until the day IS reduced his battered but precious upright piano to ashes: "That's when I decided to leave."
He would make for Germany, from where he would then try to get his family out of Syria. He began the dangerous journey out of Damascus "as rockets rained down," heading north through the provinces of Homs, Hama, and Idlib until he reached the Turkish border.
"At every step, I would meet another trafficker of human flesh," he recalled.
With the help of smugglers, he avoided Turkey's increasingly watchful security forces by crawling through barriers of barbed wire and spending nights sleeping fitfully in dark forests.
With other Syrian men, women, and children, Ahmad trekked through mountainous terrain to reach the Turkish coast.
"Once, we went 24 hours without eating a thing; the children were so hungry they would cry. It was horrible," Ahmad said.
On September 10, he began posting pictures on Facebook to document his journey. The first was of his emaciated face. When he was in Yarmouk, he weighed a mere 45 kilos (99 pounds).
'Tragedy has crossed the seas'
When he finally arrived in Izmir on the Mediterranean, Turkey's second port, Ahmad was shocked to see refugees "sleeping on sidewalks as they couldn't afford a hotel room."
A trafficker arranged for him to spend the night in an apartment "full of rats and insects." Then, he and some 70 others were crammed into a tiny van heading to the coastline, where they would take a dinghy to the Greek island of Lesbos.
They each paid smugglers $1,250, as thousands of others had done, knowing they might not survive. Suddenly gripped with fear, Ahmad took to his Facebook travel journal, "Diaries of a Traveler in the Sea."
"Dearest Mediterranean, I am Aeham and would like to safely ride your waves," he posted on Monday.
When the first rays of sunlight struck the sea at dawn on Thursday, Ahmad found himself on a Greek beach.
Tapping along on his knees, he sang a tragic tune about the "death haunting" his country: "Tragedy has crossed the seas/ Syria implores its displaced children to return."
Dreaming, like so many others, of reaching Germany, Ahmad made his way to Macedonia, then Serbia, and was on his way to Zagreb Saturday night "if they let me in."
"It has been non-stop," he told AFP. "I haven't slept for the past three days; I am exhausted. I hope I will reach my destination soon."
"I want to play in the streets of Berlin like I played in the streets of Yarmouk," he said. But his dream doesn't end there.
"I would love to play in the most famous orchestras, touring around the world and conveying the suffering of those that are besieged in (Yarmouk) and of all the civilians still in Syria."
Three years of siege, famine and bombing of his Damascus refugee camp didn't kill celebrated Palestinian musician Aeham al-Ahmad, but something died inside him the day militants burnt his beloved piano in front of his eyes.
It was then that Ahmad, whose music had brought consolation, even a bit of joy, to Yarmouk camp's beleaguered residents, decided to join thousands of others and seek refuge in Europe.
"They burned it in April, on my birthday. It was my most cherished possession," Ahmad said. "The piano wasn't just an instrument. It was like the death of a friend."
For 27-year-old Ahmad, whose songs of hope amid the rubble of Syria's largest Palestinian camp became a social media sensation last year, "it was a very painful moment."
Since Syria's civil war struck Yarmouk in 2013, the once-thriving neighborhood saw its population dwindle from as many as 160,000 Palestinians and Syrians to barely 18,000 people.
The camp was caught up in fighting among government forces and militants and suffered a devastating siege by the Syrian army. About 200 people died from malnutrition and a lack of medicines.
Ahmad became a symbol of hope, helping Yarmouk's people -- particularly its children -- forget for a moment the brutal war raging around them with every note he played.
"The days when I felt the most helpless were when I had money, but I could not get milk for my year-old baby Kinan, or when my older son Ahmad would ask me for a biscuit," he said. "It was the worst feeling."
But after Islamic State group militants attacked the camp in April, Ahmad's gentle, tentative ray of light was engulfed in flames.
He was in a pickup truck, trying to move his piano to nearby Yalda, where his wife and two boys were living, when he was stopped at a militant checkpoint.
"Don't you know that music is haram (forbidden by Islam)," a gunman asked, before torching his beloved instrument.
'Children cried from hunger'
Ahmad had stayed in Yarmouk until the day IS reduced his battered but precious upright piano to ashes: "That's when I decided to leave."
He would make for Germany, from where he would then try to get his family out of Syria. He began the dangerous journey out of Damascus "as rockets rained down," heading north through the provinces of Homs, Hama, and Idlib until he reached the Turkish border.
"At every step, I would meet another trafficker of human flesh," he recalled.
With the help of smugglers, he avoided Turkey's increasingly watchful security forces by crawling through barriers of barbed wire and spending nights sleeping fitfully in dark forests.
With other Syrian men, women, and children, Ahmad trekked through mountainous terrain to reach the Turkish coast.
"Once, we went 24 hours without eating a thing; the children were so hungry they would cry. It was horrible," Ahmad said.
On September 10, he began posting pictures on Facebook to document his journey. The first was of his emaciated face. When he was in Yarmouk, he weighed a mere 45 kilos (99 pounds).
'Tragedy has crossed the seas'
When he finally arrived in Izmir on the Mediterranean, Turkey's second port, Ahmad was shocked to see refugees "sleeping on sidewalks as they couldn't afford a hotel room."
A trafficker arranged for him to spend the night in an apartment "full of rats and insects." Then, he and some 70 others were crammed into a tiny van heading to the coastline, where they would take a dinghy to the Greek island of Lesbos.
They each paid smugglers $1,250, as thousands of others had done, knowing they might not survive. Suddenly gripped with fear, Ahmad took to his Facebook travel journal, "Diaries of a Traveler in the Sea."
"Dearest Mediterranean, I am Aeham and would like to safely ride your waves," he posted on Monday.
When the first rays of sunlight struck the sea at dawn on Thursday, Ahmad found himself on a Greek beach.
Tapping along on his knees, he sang a tragic tune about the "death haunting" his country: "Tragedy has crossed the seas/ Syria implores its displaced children to return."
Dreaming, like so many others, of reaching Germany, Ahmad made his way to Macedonia, then Serbia, and was on his way to Zagreb Saturday night "if they let me in."
"It has been non-stop," he told AFP. "I haven't slept for the past three days; I am exhausted. I hope I will reach my destination soon."
"I want to play in the streets of Berlin like I played in the streets of Yarmouk," he said. But his dream doesn't end there.
"I would love to play in the most famous orchestras, touring around the world and conveying the suffering of those that are besieged in (Yarmouk) and of all the civilians still in Syria."
20 sept 2015
A human rights report confirmed that 3,022 Palestinian refugees died in the ongoing Syrian conflict over the past five years.
The Action Group for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement that 1043 refugees have died because of the bombing, 663 refugees have died because of the clashes between the Syrian regime forces and the Syrian armed opposition groups, while 415 refugees have died under torture in the Syrian regime's dungeons.
The statement also pointed that some of the refugees "have died drowning or while trying to cross the Turkish borders or because of hunger resulting from the siege imposed on the Yarmouk refugee camp.
The group pointed to the death of the refugee Mohammad Mohawesh, a resident in "Saida Zainab" refugee camp in Damascus, while trying to cross the Turkish borders. He was found dead in "Bab al-Hawa" mosque on the Turkish borders.
The Action Group for Palestinians in Syria reminded again that all the neighboring countries of Syria refuse to receive the Palestinian refugees living in Syria which increases their suffering and leads them to search for illegal ways of immigration.
The group also pointed out that the Jordanian authority continue to prevent Palestinian refugees from entering its territory based on a resolution issued in that regard, while Turkey stopped issuing visas for Palestinian refugees. But Lebanon allows entering its territory only to the Palestinian refugees who have papers which prove that they have reunion interviews in the European embassies or for those who have booked for travelling by Beirut Airport.
The Action Group for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement that 1043 refugees have died because of the bombing, 663 refugees have died because of the clashes between the Syrian regime forces and the Syrian armed opposition groups, while 415 refugees have died under torture in the Syrian regime's dungeons.
The statement also pointed that some of the refugees "have died drowning or while trying to cross the Turkish borders or because of hunger resulting from the siege imposed on the Yarmouk refugee camp.
The group pointed to the death of the refugee Mohammad Mohawesh, a resident in "Saida Zainab" refugee camp in Damascus, while trying to cross the Turkish borders. He was found dead in "Bab al-Hawa" mosque on the Turkish borders.
The Action Group for Palestinians in Syria reminded again that all the neighboring countries of Syria refuse to receive the Palestinian refugees living in Syria which increases their suffering and leads them to search for illegal ways of immigration.
The group also pointed out that the Jordanian authority continue to prevent Palestinian refugees from entering its territory based on a resolution issued in that regard, while Turkey stopped issuing visas for Palestinian refugees. But Lebanon allows entering its territory only to the Palestinian refugees who have papers which prove that they have reunion interviews in the European embassies or for those who have booked for travelling by Beirut Airport.
16 sept 2015
|
Volunteers welcomed the new year by saving a group of drowning refugees of the Greek coast, but the action was just part of larger effort to help the masses of desperate travelers.
At an hour when most families in Israel were sitting down for their holiday dinners, three volunteers were welcoming the new year by saving a group of refugees after their boat sank near the Greek coast. On Sunday night, 200 meters away from the coast of the island of Lesbos, an engine exploded on an rubber boat carrying 50 refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The boat began to sink. Women, children and babies fell into the water, many of them did not know how to swim. |
Luckily, there were three volunteers from the “IsraAID” humanitarian organization waiting on the beach – Naama Gorodischer, a project manager in the organization, Dr. Tali Shaltiel, and the group’s social worker Orli Unger. The women were originally there to help refugees who reached the coast, but when they saw the ship sinking, they immediately found themselves in the middle of a rescue mission with another group of volunteers.
“We heard screaming. The refugees became hysterical,” Naama said. “We immediately jumped into the water and swam towards them with flotation devices. We grabbed the children and swam back. Others grabbed whatever they could from the boat and swam to shore. There was a lot of panic, people were terrified,” she concluded.
Thanks to the volunteers’ quick reaction, all the refugees were saved. Gorodischer says they were lucky, but refers to what is taking place off the coast of Greece as a “Humanitarian disaster. Turkish smugglers take $1,500 per head, place them on rubber dinghies, and tell them to ‘work it out,’” she said.
“The Turkish police stop the refugees on their way, often beating them, and sometimes even shooting at the boats. Some of the refugees make the trip 5 times,” she says. “There are 30-40 boats a day and they are packed with pregnant women, children, and infants. Last week we met a women with a baby who was born by c-section just two weeks ago,” she concluded.
Greece has become the main gateway to Europe for the refugees, primarily due to the relatively harsh treatment afforded to the refugees by the Turks. “The Greek coast guard is doing good work by helping the migrant ships, while getting tips from volunteers on the coast with binoculars,” Gorodischer says.
“When the refugees arrive they start clapping, before they even understand what a long and difficult journey awaits them before they reach their destinations - Germany, Sweden, and Holland,” Gorodischer said. “They come here from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and even Somalia. These are poor families who fled the horrors of war, and are trekking for hundreds of kilometers just to find shelter. They are tired, scared, and hungry," she concluded.
Naama added: “I have no doubt that watching the rubber boats come ashore, and the visible excitement among the refugees upon arriving in a safe haven, echoes the experience of the first aliyah to Israel, with ships embarking on a dangerous journey against all odds with the hope of a better future. “
The “IsraAID” teams help the refugees with food, water, blankets, and even maps with information about the path they are expected to take. In addition to Greece, there is another “IsraAID” team on the Hungary-Serbian border crossing, which was closed Tuesday due to the refugee flows. They are calling on more Israelis to join them. “We urgently need volunteers, mainly Arabic speakers, because there is a serious language barrier here,” Gorodischer said. The organization has even handed out baby carriers that were donated by Israeli families seeking to help the refugees.
“We heard screaming. The refugees became hysterical,” Naama said. “We immediately jumped into the water and swam towards them with flotation devices. We grabbed the children and swam back. Others grabbed whatever they could from the boat and swam to shore. There was a lot of panic, people were terrified,” she concluded.
Thanks to the volunteers’ quick reaction, all the refugees were saved. Gorodischer says they were lucky, but refers to what is taking place off the coast of Greece as a “Humanitarian disaster. Turkish smugglers take $1,500 per head, place them on rubber dinghies, and tell them to ‘work it out,’” she said.
“The Turkish police stop the refugees on their way, often beating them, and sometimes even shooting at the boats. Some of the refugees make the trip 5 times,” she says. “There are 30-40 boats a day and they are packed with pregnant women, children, and infants. Last week we met a women with a baby who was born by c-section just two weeks ago,” she concluded.
Greece has become the main gateway to Europe for the refugees, primarily due to the relatively harsh treatment afforded to the refugees by the Turks. “The Greek coast guard is doing good work by helping the migrant ships, while getting tips from volunteers on the coast with binoculars,” Gorodischer says.
“When the refugees arrive they start clapping, before they even understand what a long and difficult journey awaits them before they reach their destinations - Germany, Sweden, and Holland,” Gorodischer said. “They come here from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and even Somalia. These are poor families who fled the horrors of war, and are trekking for hundreds of kilometers just to find shelter. They are tired, scared, and hungry," she concluded.
Naama added: “I have no doubt that watching the rubber boats come ashore, and the visible excitement among the refugees upon arriving in a safe haven, echoes the experience of the first aliyah to Israel, with ships embarking on a dangerous journey against all odds with the hope of a better future. “
The “IsraAID” teams help the refugees with food, water, blankets, and even maps with information about the path they are expected to take. In addition to Greece, there is another “IsraAID” team on the Hungary-Serbian border crossing, which was closed Tuesday due to the refugee flows. They are calling on more Israelis to join them. “We urgently need volunteers, mainly Arabic speakers, because there is a serious language barrier here,” Gorodischer said. The organization has even handed out baby carriers that were donated by Israeli families seeking to help the refugees.
15 sept 2015
The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has started on Monday in Geneva discussing the conditions of Palestinian refugees and human rights violations in occupied Palestine.
The Palestinian Return Center (PRC) affirmed its participation in the meetings which will last till October 2, 2015.
The PRC’s participation will mainly focus on the financial challenges facing UNRWA and the effects of these challenges on UNRWA’s ability to protect and assist the Palestinian refugees.
Last July, the UK-based Palestinian Return Center (PRC) has been granted observer status by the UN Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO).
The Palestinian Return Center (PRC) affirmed its participation in the meetings which will last till October 2, 2015.
The PRC’s participation will mainly focus on the financial challenges facing UNRWA and the effects of these challenges on UNRWA’s ability to protect and assist the Palestinian refugees.
Last July, the UK-based Palestinian Return Center (PRC) has been granted observer status by the UN Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO).
Dozens of Palestinian refugees in Sweden have been rallying outside of Malmo’s department of refugee affairs for the 10th day running to demand permanent asylum.
Speaking on behalf of the refugee sit-inners and hunger strikers, Muheeb Abu Jazar told the PIC: “96 refugees, 95% among whom from the Gaza Strip, have taken part in the strike, initiated some 24 days ago.”
He said women, children, disabled persons, and elderly refugees have been among those who initiated the sit-in to demand asylum.
According to Abu Jazar, 60% of the protesters left Gaza in the wake of last summer’s Israeli offensive.
He added that the Swedish authorities have been refusing to grant Palestinian refugees asylum because they consider the blockaded Gaza Strip a safe place to live in.
The activists also said that three hunger strikers have been transferred to hospital after their health has sharply deteriorated.
The number of those who have been rushed to hospital over the past few days has gone up to 33, including one refugee held in the intensive care, the activist added.
A refugee sit-inner was attacked by the Swedish police and others were subjected to punitive measures by the Swedish authorities in an attempt to force them to suspend the hunger strikes and sit-ins.
The rally-goers maintaining vigil in Sweden’s southern city of Malmo launched distress signals over the harsh conditions they have been made to endure, appealing to the concerned authorities and human rights organizations to seriously work on alleviating their agony.
Speaking on behalf of the refugee sit-inners and hunger strikers, Muheeb Abu Jazar told the PIC: “96 refugees, 95% among whom from the Gaza Strip, have taken part in the strike, initiated some 24 days ago.”
He said women, children, disabled persons, and elderly refugees have been among those who initiated the sit-in to demand asylum.
According to Abu Jazar, 60% of the protesters left Gaza in the wake of last summer’s Israeli offensive.
He added that the Swedish authorities have been refusing to grant Palestinian refugees asylum because they consider the blockaded Gaza Strip a safe place to live in.
The activists also said that three hunger strikers have been transferred to hospital after their health has sharply deteriorated.
The number of those who have been rushed to hospital over the past few days has gone up to 33, including one refugee held in the intensive care, the activist added.
A refugee sit-inner was attacked by the Swedish police and others were subjected to punitive measures by the Swedish authorities in an attempt to force them to suspend the hunger strikes and sit-ins.
The rally-goers maintaining vigil in Sweden’s southern city of Malmo launched distress signals over the harsh conditions they have been made to endure, appealing to the concerned authorities and human rights organizations to seriously work on alleviating their agony.