Organizations on the Ground

Notes

The African Community Society is a nongovernmental and nonprofit society established by the African community in Jerusalem in 1983. It seeks to promote culture in the Old City and empower women and youth to improve their quality of life by identifying and fulfilling community needs.

Notes

All Palestine Youth Commission was established in 2008 to work on youth development and society improvement. The commission aims to enhance the capacities and talents of Palestinian youth, providing them with the experience and knowledge they need to develop themselves and their societies; to promote mutual respect, forgiveness, and dialogue among youth; to fight racism and prejudice; and to encourage youth initiatives.

Notes

Alquds Fund and Endowment was established to respond to the city’s need for development projects that contribute to empowering and strengthening the resilience of Palestinian residents, who are under threat of displacement and land confiscation. The fund identifies urgent development priorities in the city and fundraises for them. Among its current programs of focus are development of the following sectors:

• Education (network of model schools)
• Community development (network of community centers and Jerusalem academy for Youth Creativity)
• Culture (endowing science and knowledge and building identity)
• Economic empowerment (developing long-term plans to increase the employability of Jerusalemites starting from their school years)
• Housing sector (improving housing conditions for the poor and building new housing)

Notes

The library is located inside al-Haram al-Sharif (al-Aqsa Mosque compound). Its collection of monographs, periodicals, and manuscripts includes 10,000 titles, including 200 rare titles. The books are on Islamic religion and history and on Arabic language and literature; the library holds more than 70 Arabic-language newspapers and journals, published in Palestine and other Arab countries, as well as a selection of periodicals published by Arab communities in Europe and North and South America. The library consists of a section located between al-Qibli Mosque and the Islamic Museum and houses a children’s section; and a second section, the Khatniyya Library, under the al-Qibli Mosque.

The children’s section is divided into three collections: scientific encyclopedias, educational books, and entertainment books. The Khatniyya Library has many collections. Among its most important books are the following: Quranic exegesis, Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), the Shafi‘i legal school, Arabic language and its literature, and history of Palestine.