To understand why these camps exist, we need to go back in time to two wars, which caused significant displacement.

In November 1947, the United Nations voted to partition the British mandate of Palestine into a Jewish and an Arab state. The British had ruled over this territory for almost 30 years. This decision was both considered by the Jewish community in Palestine to be a legal basis for the establishment of Israel, and rejected by the Arab community. Clashes broke out between the two communities and escalated. In May 1948, on the eve of the British forces’ withdrawal, Israel declared independence. The next day, a coalition of Arab states invaded part of the territory to restore law and order, in light of massacres and a growing refugee crisis impacting Palestinians. By 1949, the Israelis occupied all of the Negev, except for the Gaza strip. This event is called the “War of Independence” by the Israelis and “the Nakba” (meaning catastrophe) in the Arab world because of the large number of refugees and displaced persons it caused: around 750,000.

In June 1967, the Six-Day War between Israel, Egypt, Syria and Jordan took place. Following years of tensions, the Israeli Defence Forces launched airstrikes that crippled the air forces of Egypt and its allies. It then deployed a successful ground offensive and seized the Sinai Peninsula, the Golan Heights, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, causing around 250,000 people to flee.

The living conditions in Jerash Camp are far from ideal. Families reside in cramped spaces, with basic amenities often in short supply. Many homes are reinforced with corrugated roofs and sheets of asbestos, creating serious health issues. Meanwhile, sanitation facilities are inadequate, making daily life a constant struggle. Food and water is prohibitively expensive. The cost of food prevents 68% of households from having enough food on a weekly basis. In fact, 40% of children in Jerash Camp have two or fewer meals a day. To be able to buy food, 90% of households with food shortages pay for it on credit. Potable water is not readily accessible through the public water network. Only 84% of people have regular access to water, and in the event of water shortage, most take out loans and borrow from family/neighbors to buy bottled water. Without access to basic necessities and regular income, people in Jerash Camp must continually borrow money in order to survive. Yet, amidst these hardships, the spirit of the community remains unbroken.

Due to their lack of citizenship, Gazans are disproportionately disadvantaged compared to other Palestinians and ordinary Jordanian citizens. They have fewer rights and opportunities in life, with limited access to health, education, work and travel.

Local and international programmes, aimed at improving housing and sanitation in the camp, have contributed to better living conditions over the past few years. However, in addition to legal status, a core issue remains access to employment, which prevents them from building a sustainable future. These limitations have already affected a few generations: anyone who is aged up to 57 years was born in the camp.

The absence of a political solution contributes to the permanence of their vulnerable living conditions and maintains them in a permanent temporality. They are and remain de facto refugees from a land they have never seen and cannot go back to. Ever?