Area: Lebanon

Population Size: 4,402

Established date: 1956

Background:

The Dbayeh camp is 12km east of Beirut on a hill overlooking the Beirut-Tripoli highway.

It was established in 1956 to accommodate Palestine refugees who originally came from the Galilee in northern Palestine.

Because of its strategic location, the camp suffered a great deal of violence and destruction during the civil war. In 1990 alone, a quarter of its shelters were destroyed or severely damaged and over 100 of its principally Christian Palestine refugee families were displaced. It is the only remaining Palestinian refugee camp in the eastern suburbs of Beirut.

Residents live in severe economic hardship and many are unemployed. A few men find work as casual labourers and some young men work in shops or as cleaners. The camp’s infrastructure is currently undergoing comprehensive rehabilitation.

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UNRWA website