Aida Refugee Camp Virtual Tour

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in ~ Matthew 25:35

Dear Friends and supporters,

How can something so beautiful come out of one of the most hard-pressed corners of the globe? It might not seem possible but visit Aida refugee camp and meet Dr Abdulfattah Abursour to hear about beautiful resistance – an impassioned, creative and defiant response to living with the brunt of the Israeli Occupation of Palestine.

Aida refugee camp was formed in 1948 after the Nakhba (catastrophe) made two-thirds of the Palestinian population into refugees. Today more than 6,000 people from 43 destroyed villages around the Jerusalem and Hebron area live in 60,000 square feet, surrounded on two sides by walls and sniper towers in the most tear-gassed area of the world. Around 4,000 of those people are under 24 and unemployment runs at 50%. The risk of despair runs high.

Abdulfattah and his friends were determined to work with young people to help save lives, inspire hope and express their resistance in beautiful, creative, non-armed ways. Alrowwad was born in 1998 and has gone from strength to strength encouraging young people, women and others who live at the camp to learn new skills, perform and share their story through a myriad of media.

This work has blossomed despite all the difficulties of the occupation and the current issues but it needs support and solidarity. It needs you to share the stories you have heard. So take five minutes today, make a cup of tea and be transported to a place where beauty is birthed and blooms in the face of hostility and oppression.

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Sami Awad - Holy Land Trust Founder
Sami Awad, the founder and former executive director of Holy Land Trust, has spent a lifetime working the infield of community development and leadership training.