Camp No 1 was established in 1950 on 0.05 square kilometres alongside the main Nablus/Jenin road, within the municipal boundaries of Nablus.
The original inhabitants of the camp came from the cities of Lydd, Jaffa and Haifa. Some residents are also of Bedouin origin. Since there was a water spring that provided for refugees’ water needs in the early days of the camp, it is also sometimes referred to as “Ein Beit el-Ma’” (“Spring of the House of Water”). Like other West Bank camps, the camp was established on land UNRWA leased from the government of Jordan.
The camp faces very serious overcrowding issues. Shelters have 0.2 metres between them, on average, and streets are so cramped that there are no sidewalks in the camp. Space is so tight that bodies of the deceased are usually passed through windows from one shelter to another in order to reach the camp's main street during funerals.
Following the Israeli army redeployment in 1995, the camp came under Palestinian Authority control.
All shelters are connected to public water and electricity infrastructure.
The unemployment rate is 25 per cent and is affected by the increased inaccessibility of the Israeli labour market.
Statistics
- Around 6,750 registered refugees
- Two schools
- One UNRWA health centre, one other
- One physiotherapy unit
- One community-based rehabilitation centre
- One women’s programme centre
- Demographic profile:
Programmes in the camp
Major problems
- High unemployment
- Serious overcrowding
- Lack of open spaces
- Overcrowded schools
InterTech 
