Im from Leicester in the east midlands of the UK. Most of the photos in the slide are mine, there are some below taken by young people in Balata. Ive used various sites and resources for other info and films. Please drop by now and again, make a link by becoming a friend, leave a comment. Ill be posting info about people's stories so come by again and pay a visit...
Balata is the name of The Palestinian refugee camp next to the city of Nablus. It is home to around 30,0000 people and is the largest of the many refugee camps in the West Bank. It is less than 2 kilometres square and the original tents are replaced by concrete block housing with narrow alleyways.
As well as the nineteen refugee camps in the West Bank there are eight camps in Gaza and hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees also are forced to live in camps in Jordon, Lebanon and Syria.
There are Palestinian refugees all over the world, and every one of them is being denied their right to return to their homes and villages from which they were expelled. This is a right that cannot be cancelled and a right that doesn’t have a statute of limitations.
And while Palestinians continue to demand their right of return, other rights – to safety, to freedom of movement, to work and shelter and food – are violated as a matter of routine. The names of Palestinian refugee camps have become references to massacres and crimes committed against the Palestinian people: Sabra and Shatila (Lebanon), Jenin (West Bank), Rafah (Gaza).
Generations of Palestinians are waiting to return home. Many still have the original keys to their houses.
The events around the expulsion of the Palestinians from their homeland is known as Al Nakba (the catastrophe)Some families have not seen each other since. Below see families, seperated since 1948 meet on the Lebanese Israeli border
Layout by:Life in the camps is cramped and oppressive. Watch below a child in Rafah camp talk about her life.
The film below shows the difficuties of life in Balata and the determination and spirit of its people.
The Sun Doesn't Shine in Balata.
Film made by Balata Film Collective.