Country

Syria

Beit Falestini
& Olivier Jobard

Schoolgirls in a street devastated by bombing, photographed through the wreckage of a burnt-out car. — Mjedel School is one of the two schools supported by Beit Felestini since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

Aerial view of the destroyed city — Established in 1957, Yarmouk Camp spans 2.1 square kilometres and is located approximately eight kilometres from Damascus.

aerial view of a destroyed city street showing a woman and her child and a tractor — Before the war in Syria, it was home to around 200,000 Palestine Refugees, making it the largest Palestine Refugee community in the country and a key commercial hub known for its vibrant markets and affordable goods.

aerial view of a destroyed city street with residents without any vehicles — Today, it is estimated that 65,000 people have resettled in Yarmouk.

a green and mountainous landscape painted on the exposed wall of a destroyed building

schoolchildren in a devastated street — schoolchildren of Mjedel school

in the street, a swarm of schoolchildren aged around ten — There are 1600 students.
Open in the morning for boys and in the afternoon for girls.

An elderly man smoking a cigarette in front of a wall with blue Arabic writing shows a school notebook to young girls with colorful backpacks. — Mjedel school, one of the two schools that have been covered over since the fall of Bashar al-Assad and are managed by UNRWA.

A man, Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, walks through the ruins of the city. — Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.

Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, director and founder of The Palestinian House with Yamin Hammeed, volunteer at The Palestinien House. They are helping Yarmouk Makboula Jouriyyeh, whose husband is ill and who stayed in Yarmouk during the siege. — The director and founder of The Palestinian House with Yamin Hammeed, volunteer .
They are helping Yarmouk Makboula Jouriyyeh, whose husband is ill and who stayed in Yarmouk during the siege.

Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, director and founder of The Palestinian House He is treating Hassan Hammond, 70, who was displaced from the Golan in 1967 and lived in Yarmouk during the siege with his wife Makboula Jouriyyeh. — Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, director and founder of The Palestinian House
He is treating Hassan Hammond, 70, who was displaced from the Golan in 1967 and lived in Yarmouk during the siege with his wife Makboula Jouriyyeh.

wide view of the city, shadows, and passersby in the sun

Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House with a with a puppy in his hands — Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.

a woman pushes a stroller through the ruins

A devastated street with a motorcycle and a car, passersby. On a wall, numerous portraits of missing martyrs. — The Palestinian House has printed images of the 1500 martyrs of the Yarmouk camp through a chronology of events.

Five young, well-dressed girls and their chaperone are waiting in a classroom for a movie to start. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.

Yamin Hammeed, volunteer coaches young soccer player — Yamin Hammeed, volunteer at The Palestinien House is an excellent football player. He coaches the Palestine House team every week. These activities are free for the youth of Yarmouk.

four young boys are playing soccer in the middle of ruins

A girl playing at a chess tournament is being held in honor of his friend Hussein Taha, who died during the siege in 2015 — A chess tournament is being held in honor of Khaldoun's friend Hussein Taha, who died during the siege in 2015. He used to play chess with him regularly.

a worker on a ladder in the middle of ruins

In a very poor interior, two volunteers help an elderly couple fill their old kerosene stove. — Leila, 85, lived in Yarmouk throughout the siege. She was three years old when she immigrated to Syria after the Nakba.

Nazha (54 years old) lost her husband and five children during the revolution. She currently lives in this apartment with her daughter Aya (22 years old) and her son. — Aya (22) lives in this apartment with her mother, Nazha (54), who lost her husband and five children during the revolution.

Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House in a classroom — Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.

a balcony inhabited in a destroyed building, laundry drying

Volunteers rebuild a house amid the ruins.

Men clean up the destroyed streets — Every Saturday, the Palestine House organizes a garbage collection with volunteers.

A line of children walk to school amid the ruins.

close-up of a child listening with her head resting on her arms. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.

Four children in a classroom listen to a volunteer in the foreground who introduces the film screening. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers. Today's film is "Forever Green".

A volunteer, arms outstretched in front of a screen, presents the film for the session to children seated in a U-shape around the projector. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers. Today's film is "Forever Green".

Children in single file laugh behind a volunteer dressed as Donald Duck and Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, who leads the line.

Young girls beautifully veiled in blue, burgundy, and pink stand around a table listening to instructions from a volunteer. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.

A tight-knit group of young girls, children, and volunteers, some veiled and some not, laugh together in a multipurpose room. — The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.

exterior of destroyed city - a woman pushes two young girls on a swing

Outside scene of a destroyed city - two women dressed in black are pushing a stroller and walking briskly alongside a child dressed in light blue.

outside - in the foreground, a child on a bicycle looks at a wall displaying Palestinian flags and large photos of fighters

view of the destroyed city with a dog in the foreground drinking menacingly

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Mjedel School is one of the two schools supported by Beit Felestini since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
Established in 1957, Yarmouk Camp spans 2.1 square kilometres and is located approximately eight kilometres from Damascus.
Before the war in Syria, it was home to around 200,000 Palestine Refugees, making it the largest Palestine Refugee community in the country and a key commercial hub known for its vibrant markets and affordable goods.
Today, it is estimated that 65,000 people have resettled in Yarmouk.
schoolchildren of Mjedel school
There are 1600 students.
Open in the morning for boys and in the afternoon for girls.
Mjedel school, one of the two schools that have been covered over since the fall of Bashar al-Assad and are managed by UNRWA.
Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.
The director and founder of The Palestinian House with Yamin Hammeed, volunteer .
They are helping Yarmouk Makboula Jouriyyeh, whose husband is ill and who stayed in Yarmouk during the siege.
Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah is helping Yarmouk Makboula Jouriyyeh, whose husband is ill and who stayed in Yarmouk during the siege.
Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, director and founder of The Palestinian House
He is treating Hassan Hammond, 70, who was displaced from the Golan in 1967 and lived in Yarmouk during the siege with his wife Makboula Jouriyyeh.
Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.
The Palestinian House has printed images of the 1500 martyrs of the Yarmouk camp through a chronology of events.
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.
Yamin Hammeed, volunteer at The Palestinien House is an excellent football player. He coaches the Palestine House team every week. These activities are free for the youth of Yarmouk.
A chess tournament is being held in honor of Khaldoun's friend Hussein Taha, who died during the siege in 2015. He used to play chess with him regularly.
Leila, 85, lived in Yarmouk throughout the siege. She was three years old when she immigrated to Syria after the Nakba.
Aya (22) lives in this apartment with her mother, Nazha (54), who lost her husband and five children during the revolution.
Dr. Khaldoun Muawiyah Al-Mallah, 43, director and founder of The Palestinian House.
Every Saturday, the Palestine House organizes a garbage collection with volunteers.
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers. Today's film is "Forever Green".
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers. Today's film is "Forever Green".
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.
The Palestine House screens films with animations organized by volunteers.

Syria — Beit Falestini

Eight kilometres south of Damascus, Yarmouk Camp was once home to 160,000 people and known as Little Palestine in exile. After a decade of bombardment, siege, and war, much of it is rubble. Approximately 65,000 people have begun to return. In classrooms opened against the odds, on football pitches cleared from debris, and in a free medical clinic that never closed, the work of recovery is already underway.

In 2026, The PhotoBridge Project worked with photographer Olivier Jobard to document that recovery. His images tell the story of a community that refused to wait: children learning Arabic and English in buildings still scarred by conflict, a volunteer coaching the next generation of players among the ruins, a doctor treating patients whose bodies carry the long-term toll of years without adequate care.

The stories revealed here show how residents of Yarmouk, despite the scale of destruction around them, are building education, healthcare, livelihoods, and belonging for themselves and their children. They are a testament to the determination of Beit Falestini's founders and to the deep-rooted strength of a community that has survived displacement twice and is not finished yet.

About Beit Falestini

Beit Falestini, the Palestinian House, is a new independent civil society initiative based in Yarmouk Camp, Damascus. Founded in the immediate aftermath of the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime by people from the camp itself, it works across education, public health, livelihoods, and community services to support residents who have returned and encourage those still displaced to come back.

Through free classes for children aged 9 to 12, expression workshops, animated film screenings, and a medical clinic providing care at no cost, Beit Falestini offers both immediate support and long-term investment in the capacities of individuals and families. Its vision is a self-sufficient community, capable of expressing itself intellectually, culturally, and politically, built by the people who know it best.