Neirab Palestinian refugee camp, Syria
By refocus project
30 September 2008
Over three weeks refocus project gave 14 adolescents intensive photography training and gave digital cameras as a tool to communicate. The images documented life in the camp, their hopes, dreams and opinions. The images presented here are just a few out of hundreds that were taken.
Neirab camp is the largest official camp in Syria and is situated 13 kilometres east of the city of Aleppo near Aleppo airport. The camp was established between 1948-1950 for refugees from northern Palestine on 148,000 square metres in and around army barracks constructed by the Allied Forces during World War II. The refugees found shelter in the barracks, which they modified as best they could to provide some privacy and to accommodate the needs of their growing families. As of June 2002, there were 17,994 registered refugees, of which approximately 10,000 live within camp boundaries.
Today, the majority of the refugees are casual labourers. Others work informally as street vendors.
While UNRWA has been able to make essential improvements and maintenance to the barracks, the housing situation in Neirab remains deplorable, and many of the shelters are the most unhealthy and unsafe in the Syria Field. The poor construction of the barracks results in scorching temperatures in summer and freezing conditions in winter. Water leakage and rodent infestation remain a problem for the refugees. The quality of life is also affected by the lack of privacy. The camp's streets are the only place for children to play and even they are often no wider than the span of a child's arms.
1 Response
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On 7 November 2008 Shannon Dagher gave props:
YES, YES, YES! :)
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