The anger of the Palestinians in the refugee camps is growing

2023-06-21 17:05:09, Kosova & Bota CNA

About 900,000 Palestinians living in the West Bank are classified as refugees. They are displaced from their homes in what became the state of Israel in 1948. About a quarter of them live in refugee camps that are overcrowded, poor and have often been the scene of clashes with Israeli soldiers. VOA correspondent Linda Gradstein visited the Balata refugee camp in the northern West Bank.

In one of the narrow alleys of the Balata refugee camp, Umm Riyad Abu Shalal, the mother of Palestinian militant leader Abdullah Abu Shalal, stands in the ruins of her home.

"The first time the Israeli soldiers came to arrest him, they shot at the windows and the door, but he managed to get away. The second time, they destroyed the house, but he still managed to get away. But because they destroyed the house, now the whole family of nine has nowhere to stay," says Umm Riyad Abu Shalal, a resident of the refugee camp in Balata.

As Abu Shalal's mother recounts the Israeli raid two weeks ago, young men start running through the alleys after word spreads that Israeli special forces have re-entered the camp.

Eleven militants from the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade in Balata have been killed in recent months during clashes with Israeli soldiers, one of the camp's political leaders explains, amid gunfire. Due to the clashes, another victim was marked, a 19-year-old Palestinian who the residents say was not armed.

"The Israeli soldiers start the clashes. We just want our freedom. Camp residents just want to live like everyone else. "Almost every day the Israeli army comes here to arrest the men who are wanted," says Mohammed Tirawi, a political leader in the Balata camp.

The Israeli army claims that explosive devices and weapons were used against it, so it retaliated by opening fire, leaving several injured.

Balata is the largest refugee camp in the West Bank. About 30 thousand Palestinians live there. Like other refugee camps in the West Bank, the camp is run by the United Nations, which is facing many challenges as a result of a drop in donations.

Recently, there was a 4-month strike, due to which all services in the camp were interrupted, including education and outpatient services.

"I do not support violence, but this situation must change. It is very dangerous and can lead to violence. What are these young people supposed to be doing here? No one cares about us, neither the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah nor the rest of the world," says Ahmed Thoukan from the service commission in Balata camp.

Almost two-thirds of Palestinians living in Balata are under the age of 25. They say they want to see an independent Palestinian state, but they see that the chances of achieving that day are slim.

Therefore, they have resorted to arms and say that they will force Israel and the Palestinian Authority to give them the rights they deserve./ VOA