Palestine campaigns for countrymen in Syria

A member Fatah's Central Committee has announced a support campaign for Palestinians caught up in Syria's violent pro-democracy uprising.  Dr Mohammed Ashteya said that the campaign called  “Relief for our People in Syria" was supported and guided by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Ashteya, who heads the campaign, said at a press conference on noon Wednesday: "The campaign which was launched in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem, aims for the relief 472 Palestinian refugees living in refugee camps in Syria, in addition to 172,000 Palestinians living outside the camps, in a timeframe which begins today and ends within a month, or a month and a half. " He added: "The campaign is based on providing two types of assistance, financial assistance -- account numbers in some Palestinian banks will be announced within the next two days to donate through them -- and will give the donor a receipt to the value of his donation, as well as providing food assistance. We hope that the donations will come from Palestinians.” He continued: "The cabinet discussed on Tuesday a mechanism to support the campaign, by studying a proposal to deduct taxes of corporations for the benefit of the campaign. The Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs shall allocate the Friday sermons to talk about the campaign for next month." Ashteya also called on the Christian clergy to allocate part of the prayer next Sunday to talk about the campaign, as well as the people in the territories of 1948, and Palestinians the world over to contribute. As for the current economic situation and its impact on donations to the campaign, he said: "We cannot deny the existence of a financial crisis, but we hope it will not affect the campaign, especially as we approach the holy month of Ramadan, a month of charity and generosity." He explained that the donations will reach Syrian territory through the United Nations and the UN Relief and Works Agency and World Food Programme, adding: “The Palestinian position of Syria is clear. We wish Syria all the best and we support the will of the Syrian people. The Palestinian people in Syria are not a target, because we are not a party in Syria's internal affairs.