Short-term (2 to 4 weeks) "manual work" project in Palestine

Youth Development Department (YDD) in cooperation with the African Community Society.

Cleaning the Historical Corners of the Old City. Organizing activities for the African Community children.

The Youth Development Department (YDD) was founded to work with a development perspective, and to work as a professional and technical umbrella for the youth sector in Jerusalem, through the existing youth bodies in Jerusalem, locally, regionally and internationally.

Jerusalem is a very important city not only for religious reasons, being important for all the three main monotheistic religions, but also for its strategic position as a very vital commercial crossroads. Currently Israel is persisting in the Judaization of the city.
To force Palestinians to leave Jerusalem and move to the West Bank or to other countries, Israel’s authorities use several ways, one of this is that for Arab Jerusalemite there are problem of crowded housing conditions, ever worse with the influx of the “illegal residents”. In general they were concentrated in a few neighbourhoods or spread throughout East Jerusalem.
The actions of Israel - the new colonies, the construction of the Wall, the demolitions of houses, a system of rigid limitations to the concession of permissions of house building and the continuous closing of the Palestinian institutions determine an increment of the Jewish presence in East Jerusalem, deteriorate the Palestinian community in the city, hinder the city development of the Palestinian of Jerusalem.

The program has different forms of work finalized to maintain the Old City that volunteers can participate in. The workcamp is aimed to underline the importance of Jerusalem and particularly the Old City for the Palestinian.

The work will be divided into different sessions, such as:
- Working on cleaning the historical Walls of the Old City.
- Cleaning the corners of the Old City.
- Cultural exchange through interaction with the local community (experience, dance, culture).

- Documentary films.
- Field visits in the areas surrounding East Jerusalem (Refugee Camp, destroyed villages, Historical Wall of East Jerusalem, villages separated from Jerusalem by the Isolation Wall, but traditionally part of the city).
- Meeting and testimony with Palestinians affected from house demolition and revocation residence and also with political prisoners.
- Cultural Events in East Jerusalem.

With the spread of Islam and the conversion of African in Africa, more and more black people participated in the Haj. However there were also migrations from Arabia to Africa and later back to Arabia to perform the Haj. The Palestinian historian Al Aref reported that some people trace the historical presence of contemporary Africans in Jerusalem back to Arabia. The origins of the African community go back to pure Arabic roots. The majority of the members are derived from the Arab Muslim tribe called Al Salamat. The tribe was living in Jeddah, Hijaz (now in Saudi Arabia), and then migrated to Chad and Sudan with Hijaz, especially Mecca and Medina for the Haj, and after the pilgrimage they went to Jerusalem to continue their worship in Al Aqsa mosque, the place of the nocturnal journey of the prophet Mohammed to the seven Heavens.

Settling in the Old City of Jerusalem

Most contemporary members of the African community came to Jerusalem as pilgrims. They also came to Jerusalem to defend the local Muslim holy shrines. Moreover, the Africans living in Jerusalem are proud of their historic role as guardians of the Islamic holy places since the time of the Mamluk in the 13th century. They occupy the Mamluk buildings of either side of Alaá Ad-Deen Street leading to Al Aqsa mosque. On one side are situated the Ala'Ed Deen Busari buildings, completed in 1267 and named after the Mamluk founder of the quarter. On the other side are situated the Al Mansouri buildings which were completed in 1282. Originally the two ribats were hostels for pilgrims worshipping at Al Aqsa Mosque. During the Ottoman period the Ribats were occupied by Africans who worked as guards of the mosque and Waqf properties. Because of their honesty these Africans held the key of the gates of the mosque and were responsible for preventing non-Muslims from entering the mosque area. Towards the end of the Ottoman era the Ribats were converted into prisons, Ribat Ad-Deen became Habs Ad-Dam while Ribat Mansouri became Habs Ar-Ribat.
Men who came from Africa to Jerusalem during this century married local women, many of whom were of African descent themselves. Ties with different Palestinian cities and towns where many African communities exist are particularly strong, like Jericho, Acre, Ledda, etc. Other married Palestinian women who have no ties with Africa. Although African Palestinians of Jerusalem are a separate community from the black Bedouin, some inter-marriages occur.

Old City of Jerusalem.

Volunteers will be hosted in two apartments in the African Quarter in the Old City (gender separated).

200 Euros, to be paid on arrival.