United Palestinian Appeal

United Palestinian Appeal

"Established in 1978, United Palestinian Appeal, Inc. (UPA) is dedicated to providing aid to Palestinians in need, especially children, in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon...

"UPA is also registered with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as a private voluntary organization engaged in foreign aid."


 * Ghassan Tarazi - Executive Director

History
In 1985: "UPA became the first Palestinian-American charity to be registered with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as a Private and Voluntary Organization (PVO).*

"UPA began funding the construction of a $2.4 million nursing college on the Mount of Olives affiliated with Al-Makassed Islamic Charitable Hospital.

"Thanks to a $1.1 million grant from King Fahd of Saudi Arabia and his brother Prince Salman, UPA was also able to greatly expand its assistance programs in the areas of health care, education, children's services, community development, and emergency relief."

In 2002: "UPA was awarded a $2.7 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to implement a job creation and infrastructure development program throughout the West Bank and Gaza in cooperation with the Welfare Association in East Jerusalem."

In 2007: "Working with the US-based Sabre Foundation, UPA sent more than $600,000 worth of academic textbooks to the West Bank."

In 2008: "In December, as Israel launched a massive military campaign in Gaza, UPA and its partner Relief International (RI), fueled by an unprecedented outflow of public support, embarked on an initiative to provide direct relief to thousands of Palestinian refugees displaced by the fighting and facing hunger and malnutrition."

In 2009: "UPA's partner Al Huda Development Association distributed bread rations to more than 700 families in and around the Rafah refugee camp."

Directors
Accessed October 2009:


 * Afaf Nasr - Publisher, New York
 * Isam Salah - Attorney-at-Law, New York
 * George Salem - Attorney-at-Law, Washington, D.C.
 * Mohammad Tarbush - Banker, Geneva
 * Haidar Abdel Shafi (Deceased) - Chairman of the Red Crescent Society for the Gaza Strip

Contact

 * Web: http://helpupa.com

Related Sourcewatch articles

 * Omar Kader
 * Mary Kate Chaath