Nevertheless, in an area where opportunities are rare, and the day-to-day situation dire, many professionals, such as engineers and doctors, drive taxis and sell pet birds in a bid to survive.
"The Lebanese government issued a decree, banning the Palestinians from practising 72 types of jobs outside the camp,' he explains. 'They were allowed to do hard labour jobs, such as digging roads, but that has now stopped. We have no rights. On the contrary, we are restricted in our movements. Even the right of expression as a Palestinian is non-existent -- we have no rights of expression."
In terms of his future, his outlook is simple enough. "I will either die here as a martyr or go back to my homeland," he says unflinchingly. "It will be one way or the other."
My next appointment entailed a half kilometre drive through the worn street of the camp. With an armed guard in the back of the car, it took us 10 minutes to veer through the various obstacles in our path. Suspicious eyes peered from shops on the side of the road, while fruit and hanging meat were displayed in the midday sun.
"The Lebanese government issued a decree, banning the Palestinians from practising 72 types of jobs outside the camp,' he explains. 'They were allowed to do hard labour jobs, such as digging roads, but that has now stopped. We have no rights. On the contrary, we are restricted in our movements. Even the right of expression as a Palestinian is non-existent -- we have no rights of expression."
In terms of his future, his outlook is simple enough. "I will either die here as a martyr or go back to my homeland," he says unflinchingly. "It will be one way or the other."
My next appointment entailed a half kilometre drive through the worn street of the camp. With an armed guard in the back of the car, it took us 10 minutes to veer through the various obstacles in our path. Suspicious eyes peered from shops on the side of the road, while fruit and hanging meat were displayed in the midday sun.