Among the hills of northern Jordan, three miles west of the Roman ruins of Jerash, a sprawling settlement is home to more than 40,000 Palestinian people<\/a>. Set up as an emergency shelter<\/a> to accommodate 11,500 Palestinians forcibly displaced from Gaza during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Jerash camp \u2013 known locally as Gaza camp \u2013 was intended as a temporary solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The initial clusters of tents have since evolved into a more permanent settlement, where generations of refugees have grown up. Jordan hosts the largest number of Palestinian refugees in the world and most of the 2.3 million living there<\/a> have been granted citizenship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the Palestinians who arrived in 1967 remain stateless<\/a>. Without national IDs, they cannot find work, own property or receive state benefits. More than 88% of people in Gaza camp do not have health insurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the camp\u2019s earliest inhabitants was Mokhtar Yahya, who arrived there as a baby. Born in Rafah a few weeks before the 1967 war broke out, his parents fled from Gaza to Jordan<\/a> carrying him in a blanket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They had sought refuge in Gaza camp firmly believing that their exile would be shortlived. But three generations of the family have now spent their entire lives in the camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now in his late 50s, Yahya and his family yearn to return to a homeland most of them have never seen. Dressed in a black thobe<\/em> with a Jordanian red-and-white keffiyeh around his head, Yahya sits on a threadbare sofa in his living room, watching Palestinians in Gaza celebrating the ceasefire<\/a> between Israel and Hamas on television.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Yahya, this ceasefire, after 465 days of war and 46,000 lives lost, is too late; 40 members of his family were killed during the war, their homes reduced to rubble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor the past 15 months, we have been living in a constant state of panic,\u201d says Yahya. \u201cEach day just brought more bad news. For the residents of Gaza camp, this conflict has been psychological warfare. I don\u2019t know a single person here that hasn\u2019t been affected.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mental illness was already a growing concern<\/a> among Palestinian refugees in Jordan. But since Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza in October 2023, there has been a significant psychological impact among people in the camp, most of whom have close family and friends caught up in the conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr Omar Gammoh, a professor at Yarmouk University in Jordan, has been studying the mental health of refugee populations for more than a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His latest research, conducted in Gaza camp<\/a> since 7 October, found alarming rates of severe depression (73%), anxiety (60%), and insomnia (65%) among the camp\u2019s women. Men were excluded from the study as most did not want to take part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe circulating violent content with scenes of mutilated bodies, bombarded homes and injured children has placed an immense psychological burden on these women,\u201d says Gammoh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLosing contact with family and friends, sometimes for months, further exacerbates their stress and anxiety levels.\u201d Severe depression was significantly associated with prior diagnosis of chronic diseases, including diabetes and hypertension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe crossover between mental health and chronic diseases is well established among war-displaced refugees,\u201d says Dr Bilal al-Jaidi, who was involved in the research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut our findings underscore the critical need for swift, targeted interventions to mitigate the profound impact this war has had on this vulnerable and overlooked population.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We hope this ceasefire means that my mother can finally come home. Until we are reunited, we cannot rejoice<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Yousef Jaafar<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unrwa, the United Nation\u2019s Palestinian refugee agency, operates in Gaza camp and offers various mental health services, including screening, counselling, medication and a referral process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A spokesperson said mental health cases had consistently increased in the camp but stigma among the community remained a barrier to access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unemployment and restrictions on movement make living with depression and chronic illnesses tougher \u2013 and many go without medication or specialised treatment that could help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ola Ali Abdul, 43, has uterine cancer and could not afford private healthcare in Jordan. In August 2023, she travelled to Gaza, where surgery was cheaper, and had been on a waiting list when the conflict broke out; she then became stuck in the territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe told me to look after my siblings and that she would be back soon,\u201d says 18-year-old Yousef Jaafar, Abdul\u2019s eldest son. \u201cBut I worry we may never see her again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The children\u2019s father died four years ago after a stroke and so they were left in the care of their grandmother, Nimah. \u201cThey miss their mother and cry for her every day,\u201d says Nimah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne of them hardly speaks any more and another just stares at the wall.\u201dskip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sign up to Global Dispatch<\/p>\n\n\n\n Free newsletter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enter your email addressSign upPrivacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dark circles frame Jaafar\u2019s eyes; the teenager has been doing odd jobs around the camp to raise money to bring his mother back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe hope this ceasefire means that my mother can finally come home,\u201d he says. \u201cUntil we are reunited, we cannot rejoice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m glad this nightmare is finally over \u2013 but so much uncertainty remains<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Dalia Muhammad<\/p>\n\n\n\n At a desk inside a two-storey community centre in the middle of the camp, Nawal Ghawanmeh sifts through the cases she has that week. The 36-year-old has been working as a counsellor in the camp for almost a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The under-resourced centre is one of few in the camp and helps roughly 130 families every three months, providing counselling and support. \u201cWe are only able to offer the very basics here \u2013 severe cases are monitored and referred to specialists,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dalia Muhammad, 38, started counselling soon after giving birth to her fifth child in 2022.<\/strong> \u201cI had postnatal depression. I lost interest in everything and felt tired all the time,\u201d says Muhammad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bi-weekly sessions have helped Muhammad better manage her symptoms. \u201cI learned that it can happen to anyone and that being depressed doesn\u2019t make you a bad parent,\u201d she says. But the conflict in Gaza has taken a toll on Muhammad\u2019s mental health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing images of dead and injured children on social media, some of whom she knew, left her depressed and unable to sleep. \u201cI try to switch off from it but I am overcome with guilt,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNothing seemed to help; it\u2019s been constant grief and anxiety. I\u2019m glad this nightmare is finally over \u2013 but so much uncertainty remains.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite their limited means, people in the camp handed out sweets in the streets to celebrate the end of fighting in Gaza, while songs about revolution and resistance blasted from a loudspeaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Inside the home of 57-year-old Umm Ahmed, a small group of women are practising tatreez<\/a><\/em>,<\/a> a centuries-old Palestinian embroidery technique that has been passed down through generations and used to tell the story of Palestine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe usually get together and do this once a week,\u201d says Ahmed, setting down a copper tray carrying glasses of mint tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ahmed, originally from the village of Al-Faluja, about 18 miles north-east of Gaza City, arrived at the camp in 1967. \u201cWe welcome the ceasefire but after so much death and destruction, it\u2019s difficult to feel optimistic,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut tatreez<\/em> helps us navigate our feelings and find focus. Importantly, it is a way for us to honour our traditions and preserve our culture in the face of erasure,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the day draws to a close, Yahya stands at an elevation point overlooking Gaza camp as a muezzin\u2019s call to prayer echoes off the surrounding hills. \u201cThe Gazan people have never known peace \u2013 yet every day, we pray that things will get better,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne day we hope to return to a free Palestine and live with dignity. After all, a person has no place to call their own, except their homeland.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just across the border lies Gaza, much of it uninhabitable, a wasteland of rubble,<\/a> making the prospect of returning home feel as distant as ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"General](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/b270bd2b7e25aaa9bec72824e74013f36d34f1f6\/0_0_3360_2240\/master\/3360.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none\")
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