Emergency Relief by Life for Relief and Development USA (LIFE) Provided to 135 Displaced Families in Jenin Camp, Palestine

Imagine having all your belongings, your home, and livelihood torn from you. You witness the destruction of your community, but miraculously, you and your family have survived, so you cling to hope. With nothing to your name, you must build a new beginning in a refugee camp, hoping for a better life for your children.

Refuge – finding safety and shelter from danger. This camp should have been an opportunity for a fresh start. Over 70 years later, its residents and their offspring find themselves in a worse situation than ever expected.

This is the reality faced by Palestinians in West Bank’s Jenin Refugee Camp. Originally established in 1953 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), it was built to house Palestinian refugees displaced during the 1948 Nakba, where more than 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes.

The living situation in the camp is dire; with over 22,000 people squeezed into a miniscule 0.42 km², population density is a significant concern. In this limited area, residents must endure poor sewage systems, inadequate lighting and ventilation, and frequent water and electricity shortages.

For many living in this camp, this is all they have ever known. Growing up in one of the poorest areas in the West Bank, residents are restricted from access to jobs outside of the camp, resulting in above-average unemployment and a dependence on aid. Further robbing these refugees of their dignity, they face repeated curfews, arrests, home demolitions, and infrastructure damage.

In fact, in early 2025, raids, destruction, and sieges in Jenin Camp further displaced around 21,000 residents. For these families and their dependents, a multi-layered sense of displacement has been experienced. Generations have been torn from any roots they have put down, trying to survive in a situation where nothing is guaranteed.

Aware of the urgent assistance required by refugees in Jenin Camp, West Bank, Palestine, Life for Relief and Development USA (LIFE) arranged an Emergency Relief distribution between March 13 and March 19, 2025. Providing short-term immediate relief to 135 families, LIFE distributed essential supplies, such as food baskets containing rice, lentils, cooking oil, canned goods, and other essential items, and personal hygiene kits to those exposed to the harsh conditions of displacement. Priority was given to the most affected families, including women, children, the elderly, and those with disabilities.

The distribution granted direct relief to vulnerable families, dramatically improving the daily living conditions of displaced families, reducing the physical suffering they endured. This gave them greater resilience in facing challenges, along with a reduction in health risks associated with poor living conditions.

One mother of four, Amina, struggling to provide for her children after her home in Jenin Camp was destroyed, shared: “This food basket is a lifeline for us. I no longer have to worry about what we will eat. It feels good to know I can keep my children safe and healthy.” The hygiene kit, which included soap, sanitary napkins, and disinfectants, ensured that she could maintain cleanliness and protect her children from diseases, especially in the overcrowded conditions they were living in.

For another beneficiary, an elderly man, Ahmad, the physical and emotional toll of displacement was weighing heavily on him. With limited access to essential supplies, maintaining basic cleanliness was a luxury. LIFE’s emergency aid and your donations provided Ahmed with something that money can’t buy. Expressing how much your generosity means to him, he shares: "It is the little things that matter. Having soap and toothpaste again, and knowing we have food, has restored some dignity in our lives."

For these families who have known nothing but displacement for generations, your charity and kindness is a source of relief in a world of instability and hardship.

Amina and Ahmed captured below: