 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(January 2024) |
Birzeit camp is a Palestinian refugee camp established in 1948. It is located on both sides of a street in the center of the town of Birzeit in the Ramallah and Al-Bireh Governorate. Until now, the camp has not been recognized by the United Nations refugee agency UNRWA.
Birzeit camp was established in 1948 in the town of Birzeit, located seven kilometers north of Ramallah, on an area of 23 dunams located on both sides of a street in the center of the city. Over time, the camp's area has shrunk to only 6 dunams. [1]
The population of Birzeit camp, when it was established in 1948, was estimated at 8,000 people. This number began to shrink due to the displacement of residents to neighboring towns or within the village of Birzeit, and the shrinkage of the camp's land area, in addition to the failure of the Refugee Relief Organization to recognize the camp, until in 1967 the population was only 86 people. The camp's population in 2010, according to statistics from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, was only about 180 people.
The demographic composition of the population of Birzeit camp consisted of residents of a number of Palestinian villages displaced in 1948, such as the villages of Kafarana, Abbasiya, Salamah, Beit Nabala, Al-Masmiyeh, Lod, Abu Shusha, and Quliya. At first, the refugees lived in tents, then they built small houses of stone and mud and roofed them with zinc boards. They were accustomed to paying symbolic rents to the landowner in exchange for their housing and use of the camp land, but with the passage of time the area of available land shrank. As it approached the point where it was no longer sufficient to accommodate the families inhabiting the camp, most of the refugees who lived in the camp have rented houses outside the camp or moved to other camps such as Al-Amari Camp, Al-Jalazoun Camp, and Aqabat Jabr Camp. Some of them were also displaced to other countries outside the Palestinian territories, such as Jordan, due to the limited and insufficient space of the camp, with many of the camp's residents unable to build a room or a place to live.
According to the statement of the head of the popular committee in the camp, Nasser Sharaya, the camp currently[ when? ] consists of forty-five independent buildings containing sixty-five residential apartments. [2]
The residents of Birzeit camp benefit from the services available in the town of Birzeit. They obtain water from the Jerusalem Water Company, and electricity from the town of Birzeit reaches about 15 homes in the camp, but there are up to five homes that do not have access to electricity. Waste collection service is available to camp residents, and Birzeit camp also contains a nutrition center for refugees, about 200 meters away from the camp.
There are no health services available inside the camp, forcing the camp residents to use the health center of the neighboring Jalazone camp, which is about three kilometers south of Birzeit camp, when they need to obtain treatment and medical services. [3] [4] [5]
In the 1950s, the Refugee Relief Organization (UNRWA) established a basic school for girls to serve the residents of Birzeit camp. The school consisted of two rooms that UNRWA rented from the residents. This remained the case until an official girls’ school was built in the town of Birzeit to serve the camp residents and all refugees in the town. Male students go to outside schools. [6]
Birzeit camp is still not officially recognized by the United Nations Refugee Relief Agency (UNRWA), nor is it listed with the ministries and departments of the Palestinian Authority government. This increases the difficulty of accessing accurate official digital information about the camp's area, population numbers and origins when the camp was established. [7]
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East is a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. UNRWA's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 Palestine War and subsequent conflicts, as well as their descendants, including legally adopted children. As of 2019, more than 5.6 million Palestinians are registered with UNRWA as refugees.
Palestinian refugees are citizens of Mandatory Palestine, and their descendants, who fled or were expelled from their country over the course of the 1947–1949 Palestine war and the Six-Day War. Most Palestinian refugees live in or near 68 Palestinian refugee camps across Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In 2019 more than 5.6 million Palestinian refugees were registered with the United Nations.
Khan Yunis is a city in the southern Gaza Strip; it is the capital of the Khan Yunis Governorate in the Gaza Strip. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Khan Yunis had a population of 205,125 in 2017. Khan Yunis, which lies only 4 kilometers east of the Mediterranean Sea, has a semi-arid climate with temperature of 30 degrees Celsius maximum in summer and 10 degrees Celsius minimum in winter, with an annual rainfall of approximately 260 mm (10.2 in).
Camps are set up by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to accommodate Palestinian refugees registered with UNRWA, who fled or were expelled during the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War or in the aftermath of the Six-Day War in 1967, and their patrilineal descendants. There are 68 Palestinian refugee camps, 58 official and 10 unofficial, ten of which were established after the Six-Day War while the others were established in 1948 to 1950s.
Qalandia, also Kalandiya, is a Palestinian village located in the West Bank, between Jerusalem and Ramallah, just west from the Jerusalem municipality boundary. The village had a population of 572 residents in 2017. Qalandia is also the name of a refugee camp, established by UNRWA in 1949. It is located just east from Jerusalem municipality. Qalandia refugee camp was built for Palestinians refugees from Lydda, Ramle and Jerusalem of the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight.
Qalqilya or Qalqiliya is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2017 census, the city had a population of 51,683. Qalqilya is surrounded by the Israeli West Bank wall, with a narrow gap in the east controlled by the Israeli military and a tunnel to the Palestinian town of Hableh. Qalqilya is under the administration of the Palestinian National Authority, while remaining under Israeli military occupation. Oranges are a major part of the city's economy.
Shuafat, also Shu'fat and Sha'fat, is a mostly Palestinian Arab neighborhood of East Jerusalem, forming part of north-eastern Jerusalem. Located on the old Jerusalem–Ramallah road about three miles north of the Old City, Shu'fat has a population of 35,000 residents.
Birzeit, also Bir Zeit, is a Palestinian Christian town north of Ramallah, in the central West Bank, in the State of Palestine. Its population in the 2017 census was 5,878. Birzeit is home to Birzeit University and to the Birzeit Brewery.
Barta'a is a town in Israel and Palestine that straddles both sides of the Green Line, in the Wadi Ara region.
Jalazone is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located 7 kilometers (4.3 mi) north of Ramallah and adjacent to the village of Jifna to the north, Deir Dibwan to the east, Bir Zeit to the west and the Beit El Israeli settlement to the southeast.
Far'a, Faraa or al-Fari'ah is a Palestinian refugee camp in the foothills of the Jordan Valley in the northwestern West Bank, located 12 kilometers south of Jenin and 2 kilometers south of Tubas, three kilometers northwest of Tammun and 17 kilometers northeast of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the camp had a population of 5,750 refugees in 2006, however, the UNRWA has recorded a population of 7,244 registered refugees. The PCBS recorded a population of 5,625 by 2017.
'Azza also known as Beit Jibrin Camp is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Bethlehem Governorate located within the city of Bethlehem. It is the smallest of the 59 refugee camps in the West Bank and the other Arab countries. It was established in 1950 in an area of 20 dunams and receives services from UNRWA workers based in nearby Aida camp, but inside the camp, there are no medical or educational services, so it was merged with the Aida camp to receive services.
Aqabat Jaber is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Jericho Governorate of the eastern West Bank, situated in the Jordan Valley, three kilometers southwest of Jericho.
Deir Ammar Camp is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located 30 kilometers (19 mi) northwest of Ramallah in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the camp had a population of 1,884 inhabitants in 2017.
ʿArab al-Jahalin also known as al-Jabal is a Palestinian Bedouin neighborhood in the Jerusalem Governorate, located five kilometers southeast of Jerusalem in the West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), ʿArab al-Jahalin had a population of approximately 1,856 inhabitants in mid-year 2017. The village is situated on a hillside outside al-Eizariya and 300 meters away from the Jerusalem Municipal dump. It is located in Area C of the West Bank. While the Israeli government has full control over the village, the populace hold Palestinian IDs.
Mieh Mieh refugee camp is a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, located on the outskirts of Mieh Mieh village in the hills 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) east of the southern city of Sidon. The original refugees in the camp generally came from Saffourieh, Tiereh, Haifa and Miron, in what is now Israel. It was established in 1954 on land leased from private landowners of the Miye ou Miye village. Around the 1990s, the Mieh Mieh camp was located on 60 dunams in Miye ou Miye village. Today, the camp is 1.8 times that size at 108 dunams. In 2003, it had a population of 5,037.
The Jenin refugee camp, also known as the Jenin camp, is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the city of Jenin in the northern West Bank. It was established in 1953 to house Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes by Israeli forces during and in the aftermath of the 1948 Palestine War. The camp has since become a stronghold of Palestinian militants, and has become known as "the martyr's capital" by Palestinians, and "the hornet's nest" by Israel.
Yemen was one of the first Arab countries to recognize the State of Palestine in 1988, and has since maintained a strong stance in support of Palestinian rights.
Switzerland–Palestine relations refer to foreign relations between Switzerland and the State of Palestine. The Swiss government does not recognize the existence of a Palestinian state.
Madaba camp is a Palestinian diaspora camp established in Jordan 1956. It is located half a kilometer from the city of Madaba, south of the Jordanian capital of Amman, and is administratively affiliated with the Madaba Governorate. It is the smallest Palestinian camp in Jordan in terms of area and population, as its area is estimated at 112 dunams, and its population is about 10,500 people. Some 1,200 families reside in the camp. As of 2018, Madaba camp was not recognized by UNRWA.
Palestine refugee camps locations and populations as of 2015 [1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
