Date: 24/12/2025
The Department of Refugee Affairs of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) announced the completion of a lighting project in the *Al-Husseiniya Gathering* for Palestinian refugees in the Rural Damascus Governorate in Syria, through the installation of a solar-powered lighting system. The project was implemented in cooperation with the Embassy of the State of Palestine and the General Authority for Palestinian Arab Refugees in Syria, under the direct patronage of President Mahmoud Abbas.
Dr. Ahmad Abu Holi, member of the PLO Executive Committee and Head of the Department of Refugee Affairs, explained that the completed lighting project in Al-Husseiniya—carried out with active participation from a volunteer youth team—included the installation of solar-powered streetlights along Al-Saru Street (First and Second), Haifa Street, Al-Quds Mosque Street, as well as the entrance to Al-Husseiniya and the Governorate Project area.
Abu Holi added that Al-Husseiniya Gathering, which is home to approximately 4,000 Palestinian refugees in Rural Damascus, suffers from a shortage of public services and infrastructure, along with overlapping crises including sewage problems, shortages of drinking water and electricity, and insufficient street lighting on the main roads of the gathering. He also noted the lack of services provided by UNRWA, pointing out that the completed project came in response to the urgent needs of the residents.
He stated that the importance of the project lies in its ability to address the electricity outage crisis that has heavily burdened refugees, noting that nighttime lighting will directly contribute to reducing accidents and providing a safe environment for the movement of students, women, and the elderly, thereby improving daily living conditions within the gathering.
Abu Holi emphasized that there are clear instructions from President Mahmoud Abbas to give the highest priority to refugee camps in the diaspora and to work on meeting their needs and addressing their problems according to available capabilities without delay. He stressed the Department of Refugee Affairs’ commitment to its national responsibilities toward the Palestinian people in refugee camps and gatherings in the diaspora.
He also pointed out that the Department of Refugee Affairs has a plan to identify the most urgent needs of refugee camps in the diaspora—especially in Syria and Lebanon—in order to work on meeting them. This includes contributing, through coordination with UNRWA and the General Authority for Palestinian Refugees in Syria, to addressing the problems faced by camps and Palestinian gatherings, particularly water and electricity issues, by implementing priority service and development projects for Palestinian refugees.
Abu Holi noted the existing cooperation between the Department of Refugee Affairs, the Embassy of the State of Palestine, and the General Authority for Palestinian Arab Refugees in Syria, as well as the harmony in vision and objectives to serve refugees in Palestinian camps and gatherings in Syria, improve their living conditions, and ensure a dignified and safe life until a just solution is found to their cause and their return to the homes from which they were displaced in 1948, in accordance with UN Resolution 194.
He expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Ambassador of the State of Palestine to the Syrian Arab Republic, Dr. Samir Al-Rifai, to the General Authority for Palestinian Refugees in Syria, to the Embassy of the State of Palestine in Syria, and to the volunteer youth team for their great efforts in completing the project.
For their part, the residents of the gathering expressed their deep gratitude and appreciation to President Mahmoud Abbas and to the Department of Refugee Affairs and its head, Dr. Ahmad Abu Holi, praising the swift response to the residents’ calls and the fulfillment of their service needs.
They affirmed that this project represents a new lifeline for them and reflects the Palestinian leadership’s continued concern for following up on the conditions of refugees in Syria and providing all possible support to strengthen their resilience.
