West Bank and Gaza

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Khetam Alkaabna, feeding her animals outside her home near Ramallah. Her family rely on the livestock for their income.

Since the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip by Israel following the 1967 Six-day War, Palestinians have seen their standard of living fall and their freedom restricted. Today, almost three-quarters of the population lives below the UN poverty line.

In the West Bank, most Palestinians cannot build homes or roads, or move freely from place to place because the Israeli authorities will not give them permission. This damages the economy, local services and breaks up families.

In Gaza, ongoing violence, including the conflict with Israel in December 2008, has left thousands of people without homes and unable to access medical care. Thousands of people, including many children, are traumatised.

Our work in the Palestinian territories has focused on:

Conflict resolution and peace building
Promoting and supporting economic policies that benefit poorer people
Helping people find work and secure an income
Humanitarian and disaster relief work.

We work with local organisations in Gaza providing emergency relief and counselling. In the West Bank our partner the Jerusalem Legal Aid Centre helps families who face threats from the Israeli authorities to demolish their homes. By providing lawyers for families facing threats, some demolition orders are frozen by the courts giving people a temporary reprieve and some kind of hope.

The majority of house demolitions are conducted for 'Administrative' reasons and are generally because the house was built without a permit. However permits are almost impossible to obtain by Palestinians living in almost 60 percent of the West Bank.

There are two things that make me continue this work. Firstly it’s the feeling that my work is welcomed by people and is useful to them. The second is working with a committed team who share my responsibility. Through my work I can make change. I feel lucky to have this opportunity."

– Issam, Project Coordinator, JLAC.