MANCHESTER based humanitarian aid charity Human Appeal has rebuilt four universities in Gaza after raising £227,000 in donations.

The charity, which is based in Withington, completed three month project which will benefit 52,608 university students in the Palestinian territory.

Othman Moqbel, CEO of Human Appeal, stresses the importance of rebuilding the universities, as he feels that Gaza can “never move forward whilst its institutes of higher education lay in ruin.”

He says: “No region in the world is as highly politicised as Gaza and we get distracted from the fact that, beyond the feuding regimes, there are people suffering and in great need of help.”

“Hopefully this will offer a glimmer of hope to a people who, according to the United Nations, are living in an area of the world that could become uninhabitable by 2020.”

Students in Gaza can now return to their studies
Students in Gaza can now return to their studies

Al Azhar University, the Islamic University of Gaza (the IUG), the University College of Applied Science (the UCAS) and Al Aqsa University were affected by the 2014 conflict with Israel.

At Al Azhar University and UCAS University, the charity provided structural repairs and renovations as both had suffered bomb damage.

Human Appeal also provided a wider variety of support to the universities and their students, including upgrading IT facilities, financial support for students unable to pay fees, and new lab equipment.

The Withington charity delivers sustainable development programmes in the world’s poorest nations. You can find more information on Human Appeal here.

By Max Merrill
@MaxTMradio

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