CRS History in Jerusalem, West Bank and Gaza

Catholic Relief Services' work in the Holy Land began in the 1940s serving Polish and Hungarian refugees—many of whom were Jewish or from mixed families—fleeing the devastation of World War II. CRS established a program office in 1961 under an agreement with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. In 1967, the Israeli government asked CRS to continue its presence, and CRS subsequently signed an agreement with the State of Israel. In October 1999, CRS was officially registered with the Palestinian National Authority's Ministry of Interior to carry on with our work in the West Bank and Gaza.

CRS initially provided food assistance, organized vaccination campaigns, and led other nutrition and health initiatives. In the 1970s and 1980s, CRS constructed roads, schoolrooms, bridges and wells through rural development projects. CRS also implemented nutrition education, vocational training and village health worker training projects. Water projects became a major area of focus in the 1990s.

Today, CRS focuses on providing food to impoverished Palestinians, responding to humanitarian emergencies like the January 2009 conflict in Gaza, and offering educational and nonviolence programs for young people.