Organizations on the Ground

Notes

The Terra Sancta Museum is under construction. When completed, it will comprise three distinct sections in different places: (a) an archaeological section, which will display objects recovered from the places mentioned in the Gospels in the Monastery of the Flagellation on the Via Dolorosa; (b) a multimedia section, showcasing 2,000 years of the history of Jerusalem in an all-immersive exhibit, also in the Monastery of the Flagellation; and (c) a historical section, showing the gifts of Europe’s royalty to the Holy Land in the Monastery of Saint Savior near the New Gate. Only parts of the exhibits are currently on display.

Notes

Umm Tuba Club is a support club that brings together youth with a passion for soccer. The club fosters a sense of community cohesion and solidarity among residents. Engaging in matches with other Palestinian soccer teams from localities within the 1948 boundaries, it builds bridges, fosters unity, and strengthens solidarity. Through sports, players overcome societal divisions, thereby fostering a sense of togetherness and shared identity. 

Notes

Wadi Hilweh, an area that is part of the Palestinian Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, lies just outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem near the Dung Gate/Bab Haret al-Maghariba (also called the Silwan Gate).

Since 1967, but intensively in the past decade, without informing or taking permission from its residents, Israel has transformed Wadi Hilweh into an underground excavation site whose tunnels compromise the foundations of Palestinian homes. As well, the settler organization Elad has secretly collaborated with the Israel National Parks Association to develop a national biblical theme park there called the City of David Park, which reflects only Jewish history and heritage in the city while completely ignoring and erasing Palestinian and other groups’ heritage and roots in the city. Moreover, illegal Jewish settlements are expanding throughout the neighborhood, placing hundreds of Palestinian homes at high risk of demolition under various pretexts, such as lacking the required building permits or for “public benefit” (which means for the benefit of the Jewish public).

To counter those efforts, Wadi Hilweh Information Center (Silwanic) was established in 2009 to provide information about the history and current status of the village of Silwan. It also documents and exposes the Israeli occupations’ human rights violations focusing on the illegal settlement expansion and appropriation of Palestinian properties in Jerusalem in general and in Silwan in particular.

Notes

The Women’s Center was established in 1997 under UNRWA supervision to serve and address the needs of women and children of the camp. It is grounded in the social, economic, cultural, and educational needs of women and children in the camp and provides counseling and recreational activities.

In 2002, the center became an independent Palestinian NGO. It now offers technical training programs and promotes a greater awareness of issues pertaining to health, the environment, and child-rearing. It runs a kindergarten, a nursery, and a library.

In the past few years, social projects have been introduced to stem the increase in delinquency, especially drug abuse and addiction, among the camp’s youth.