Visit to Jenin and Meetings in Ramallah, 11-12 November

On the 12 November, Oliver and Jordan travelled to Jenin to meet with prominent local officials in a visit organised by the Deputy Minister of Education Dr Nafieh Assaf.   

The purpose of this visit was to understand the humanitarian, economic, and political challenges facing the town and the former residents of the Jenin Refugee Camp.  

The town is facing a deepening economic crisis characterised by the collapse of local commerce and a severe deterioration of the financial structure in the wider West Bank. Military operations in Jenin have caused the displacement of thousands of Palestinians and extensive damage to essential infrastructure, while the suspension of approximately 100,000 work permits across the West Bank has dramatically increased unemployment from 12% to 35%.  

Oliver and Jordan alongside the Deputy Minister of Education Dr Nafieh Assaf, prominent local officials and staff members from the Elderly Care Charitable Association in Jenin.

This loss of income has critically strained local social services, which are overwhelmed and facing shortages as local donations dry up, such as the Jenin Elderly Care Charity Association. The centre, now a last resort for the displaced and economically vulnerable, is overwhelmed and facing severe shortages of basic resources and medicine.  

On the 12 November, they met in Ramallah with Arab and Fadwa Barghouti to discuss the ongoing situation of Marwan Barghouti. The conversation focused on current developments and concerns regarding his condition in prison.  

Oliver and Jordan also met with the Minister of Justice in Ramallah, Sharhabeel Al Zaeem, to discuss the development of our project to facilitate mediation systems for civil disputes in Gaza. 

Oliver and Jordan meet with Arab and Fadwa Barghouti in Ramallah.

Oliver and Jordan meet a 106-year-old resident of the Jenin Elderly Care Charity Association.