Having survived Britain’s recent cabinet reshuffle the international development secretary, Penny Mordaunt , is confronted with the biggest headache of her short ministerial career: the fallout of the US intention to cut funding to United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which constitutes one of the most serious challenges to UK policies in the Middle East.
By Palestine Center Interns
With the illegal blockade on Gaza nearing its eleventh year, more questions about the role of the UN and its humanitarian agencies in sustaining the blockade have been rising in the political arena.
By Zeina Azzam
A recent article about Palestinian schoolteachers up for a global teaching award showed a photograph of one of their classrooms: the teacher and all the children in this West Bank school were wearing their coats and jackets inside. This is perhaps because many of these schools are not heated well, if at all, making the harsh winter cold a constant reality, both indoors and outdoors.
Gaza Strip – More than a year since Israel’s deadly onslaught on the besieged Gaza Strip, the United Nations refugee agency (UNRWA) estimates that 100,000 Palestinians in Gaza are preparing to spend a second winter in damaged homes and makeshift structures.
Dr. Faedah M. Totah is an associate professor in the Political Science Department at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, VA. She teaches courses on gender, development, and politics of the contemporary Middle East including political Islam.
The Palestine Center’s 2015 conference examines multiple aspects of the current situation, focusing on the context and representation of Palestinians in the media, regional and international politics, and the United States. Internationally renowned scholars, activists, journalists, and practitioners analyze factors on the ground and larger policies in four panels.
By Zeina Azzam
The first visit of Pope Francis to the United States coincides with the autumnal equinox, when days and nights all over the world are equal in length. Such auspicious timing resonates with the Pope’s message of global parity in all arenas, including human and economic rights, environmental conservation, and protection of the vulnerable.
By Palestine Center Interns
In order to understand the legality of settlements, it is important first to appreciate the historical significance of the June War of 1967, also known as the Six Day War. After launching a military campaign against Egypt, Israel began its occupation over the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula. Then, in response to a retaliation from Syrian and Jordanian forces, Israel conquered East Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus and remaining lands in the West Bank and Golan Heights – land it still occupies today.
This project will support UNRWA’s Gaza Emergency Program, which provides the poorest and most vulnerable Palestine refugees in Gaza with essential humanitarian assistance, most notably through life-sustaining food aid.
Through educational events, humanitarian support, and cultural preservation, the Jerusalem Fund is helping build the movement for Palestinian liberation.
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