The Galway based charity, Ireland Palestine Children's Appeal has begun importing the oil into Ireland. The profits made by the charity will go towards supporting orphanages as well as other projects in Palestine. By buying this olive oil you will also be helping Palestinian farmers get a fair price for their produce. Here is a brief summary of the projects we are presently involved in supporting:

Qurtuba School, Hebron

Qurtuba school was established 37 years ago as a national School for boys and girls ages 6-12. It is situated in the centre of Hebron and is used to serve most of the city’s inhabitants. The school is in a rented building, which is old and in dire need of renovation. Nowadays in order to reach Qurtuba you have to use either the Israeli checkpoint and then al Shuhada street or take a route through the Islamic cemetery, as the southern part of al Shuhada street is closed to Arabs.

The school is in area “H”, which means it is under Israeli occupation. It is surrounded by two illegal Israeli settlements (they are clear on the map). This is the main reason for the drop in the student numbers at the school. Students are regularly attacked and harassed by both the illegal Israeli settlers and the Israeli army. In the past the school contained about three hundred students, today there is only one hundred. The teachers and local people are determined to keep the school open. It is located in the Palestinian district of Hebron, but the children and staff suffer constant attacks by Zionist settlers and their children, often as the Israeli Defence Forces stand idly by and watch.

The situation is very much likened to scenes witnessed in years past, of children trying to make their way to Holy Cross School in North Belfast, except that noone intervenes. The Settlers hope to drive the Palestinians out of the area. Many International observers see the role of the soldiers as insuring that no Palestinians come to the defence of the children. If they did they would be arrested, and more than likely beaten.

Ibraham Al Khalil Association.

This is a day care centre for children.  We have supported this community project by helping to replace broken toys.

Palestinian Progressive Youth Union.

This project is geared towards the slightly older youth of Palestine mainly children and young adults in their teens and twenties. They have many goals relating to the enhancement of friendship and responsibility, by promoting interests ranging from sports and computer skills to discouraging the use of drugs and alcohol.

They also conduct workshops on social issues ranging from human rights, gender issues, democracy, and public service outreach. They are basically trying to keep young people involved in life, while trying to encourage good citizenship. Here we supported their work by helping to purchase much-needed office equipment.

This special olive oil can be purchased by contacting the Irish importers and distributors at mountofolives@eircom.net