Today we visited the Askar Refugee Camp on the out skirt of Nablus. The camp was set up in 1948 by the UN for Palestinian refugees who were displaced after the creation of the State of Israel. The visit took place in appalling weather, it was cold with heavy rain with water flooding the roads. There were large puddles and mud everywhere, which mingled with the huge amount of litter and dumped rubbish because the camp lacks basic services. The whole place had an aura of desolation and hopelessness.
The over crowded Camp is one square kilometer housing 8, 000 refugees with only one doctor for the entire population. We came across an UNWRA school which was built with funds raised by the refugees themselves but now funded by UNWRA (United Nations Works and Relief Agency). At the end of the road we found a closed down medical center which had been funded by one of the Gulf countries and now laying idle.
Either side of the road we found boarded and corrugated iron shacks which housed animals. There were small workshops with men and children working on recycled materials and others making small wooden objects.From the road there were a number of narrow lanes with tightly packed homes, these were constructed with concrete. Some are finished others had scaffolding awaiting further floors. The building were basic and had a feeling of neglect
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