Children of Palestine

Palestinian children and young people living both within and outside of refugee camps in the Middle East are the focus of this book. For more than half a century these children and their caregivers have lived a temporary existence in the dramatic and politically volatile landscape that is the Middle East. These children have been captive to various sorts of stereotyping, both academic and popular. They have been objectified, much as their parents and grandparents, as passive victims without the benefit of international protection. And they have become the beneficiaries of numerous humanitarian aid packages which presume the primacy of the Western model of child development as well as the psycho-social approach to intervention. Giving voice to individual children, in the context of their households and their community, this book aims to move beyond the stereotypes and Western-based models to explore the impact that forced migration and prolonged conflict have had, and continue to have, on the lives of these refugee children.

Palestinian children and young people living both within and outside of refugee camps in the Middle East are the focus of this book. For more than half a century these children and their caregivers have lived a temporary existence in the dramatic and politically volatile landscape that is the Middle East. These children have been captive to various sorts of stereotyping, both academic and popular. They have been objectified, much as their parents and grandparents, as passive victims without the benefit of international protection. And they have become the beneficiaries of numerous humanitarian aid packages which presume the primacy of the Western model of child development as well as the psycho-social approach to intervention. Giving voice to individual children, in the context of their households and their community, this book aims to move beyond the stereotypes and Western-based models to explore the impact that forced migration and prolonged conflict have had, and continue to have, on the lives of these refugee children.

List of Maps, Figures and Tables
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Maps

Chapter 1. Introduction: Children of Palestine Narrate Forced Migration
Dawn Chatty and Gillian Lewando Hundt

Chapter 2. Palestinian Refugee Children and Caregivers in Lebanon
Bassem Serhan and Samia Tabari

Chapter 3. Palestinian Refugee Children and Caregivers in Syria
Adnan Abdul-Rahim with the assistance of Hala Salem Abuateya

Chapter 4. Palestinian Refugee Children and Caregivers in Jordan
Randa Farah

Chapter 5. Palestinian Refugee Children and Caregivers in the West Bank
Salah Alzaroo

Chapter 6. Palestinian Refugee Children and Caregivers in the Gaza Strip
Abdel Aziz Thabet and Hala Abuateya

Chapter 7. Policy Implications and Summary of Main Findings
Dawn Chatty and Gillian Lewando Hundt

Appendix I: Methodology
Appendix II: Literature Review
Appendix III: Sample Newsletters

Glossary
Index