Al-Shati (), also known as Shati or Beach camp, is a

Palestinian refugee camp Palestinian refugee camps were first established to accommodate Palestinians who were displaced by the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight during the 1948 Palestine war. Camps were established by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UN ...

located in the northern

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

along the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

coastline in the

Gaza Governorate The Gaza Governorate (), also alternatively known as Gaza City Governorate, is one of the 16 Governorates of Palestine, located in the north central Gaza Strip. Gaza is claimed by the State of Palestine, but the land is under the control of ...

, and more specifically

Gaza City Gaza City, also called Gaza, is a city in the Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Gaza Governorate. Located on the Mediterranean coast, southwest of Jerusalem, it was home to Port of Gaza, Palestine's only port. With a population of ...

. Al-Shati was established in 1948 for about 23,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled from the cities of

Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...

Lod Lod (, ), also known as Lydda () and Lidd (, or ), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephelah on the east and the coastal plain on the west. The ci ...

, and

Beersheba Beersheba ( / ; ), officially Be'er-Sheva, is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the centre of the fourth-most populous metropolitan area in Israel, the eighth-most p ...

as well as surrounding villages during the

1948 Arab-Israeli War Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The current Constitutions of Constitution of Italy, Italy and of Constitution of New Jersey, New Jersey (both later subject to amendment) ...

. The camp's total land area consists of 520 dunums.Beach Camp

United Nations Relief and Works Agency United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

(UNRWA) According to the

Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS; ) is the official statistical institution of Palestine. Its main task is to provide credible statistical figures at the national and international levels. It is a state institution that provid ...

(PCBS), al-Shati had a population of 40,734 inhabitants in 2017. As of July 2023, the

(UNRWA) reports a population of 90,173 registered

refugees A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

. The camp is the third largest refugee camp in the Palestinian Territories.

History

Al-Shati was established in 1948 for about 23,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled by Zionist militias from the cities of

, and

as well as surrounding villages during the

. In 1971, Israeli authorities demolished over 2,000 shelters for the purpose of widening the roads for security reasons. About 8,000 refugees were forced to leave the camp to the nearby housing project in

Sheikh Radwan Sheikh Radwan () is a district of Gaza City located nearly northwest of the city center. It borders al-Shati camp to the southwest, Rimal to the south, and Jabalia to the east. The Sheikh Radwan Cemetery is located in the district. It contains h ...

. In 2023, Al-Shati was hit by multiple airstrikes during the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

. On November 10, during the

Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip The Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip is a major part of the Gaza war. Starting on 7 October 2023, immediately after the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Hamas-led attack on Israel, Israel began bombing of the Gaza Strip, bombing the Ga ...

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

said they killed ~150

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

operatives during battles in the Al-Shati area. In November 2023 the Israel Defense Forces took control of the camp completely.

Economy

Before September 2000, when Israel closed off its border with the

due to the violence of the

Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...

, the majority of al-Shati's work force were laborers in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

or worked in agriculture. Today, some refugees work in workshops and sewing factories. A sizable number of the camp's 2453 families depend on fishing for income. It contains a sewage system, a health center, and 23 schools (17 primary, 6 secondary).

People from Al-Shati

Ismail Haniyeh Ismail Haniyeh (, ; 29 January 1962 – 31 July 2024) was a Palestinian politician who served as third chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from May 2017 until Assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, his assassination in July 2024. He also served as ...

, ''de facto''

Prime Minister of the Palestinian National Authority The prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority was the position of the official head of government of the Palestinian Authority government, which operated between March 2003 and January 2013, when it was officially transformed into t ...

Rashid Masharawi Rashid Masharawi (also: "Rashid Mashrawi") () is a Palestinian film director, born in Gaza in 1962 to a family of refugees from Jaffa. He grew up in the Shati refugee camp. Rashid Masharawi lives and works in Ramallah, where he founded the Ci ...

, filmmaker *

Said Seyam Said Seyam (; 22 July 1959 – 15 January 2009), first name also spelled Saeed and Sayed and last name also spelled Siam, was the interior minister of the Palestinian government of March 2006. He joined Hamas and became one of its top command ...

, assassinated

Interior Minister of the Palestinian National Authority The Ministry of Interior and National Security is the branch of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) cabinet in charge of the security and the statistics of the population of the State of Palestine. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statisti ...

based in Gaza * Yasser Elshantaf, Palestinian businessman living in Germany *

Fadel al-Utol Fadel al-Utol (born 1981) is a Palestinian archaeologist specialising in the archaeology of Gaza. He has been involved in various excavations in the Gaza Strip since becoming interested in archaeology as a teenager. He has campaigned for the pre ...

, Palestinian archaeologist * Mosab Abu Toha, poet

References

External links

Beach
articles from

UNWRA The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA, pronounced ) is a United Nations System, UN agency that supports the relief and Human development (economics), human development of Palestinian refugee ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shati, Al- Populated places established in 1948 1948 establishments in All-Palestine (Gaza) Palestinian refugee camps in the Gaza Strip Neighborhoods of Gaza City

History

Economy

People from Al-Shati

See also

References

External links