Areeb Ullah

Tottenham student set for Palestine internship

by Jen Morris Monday, June 25, 2012
10:00 AM

A passionate Tottenham student is giving up his summer to work for a charity in Palestine.

Areeb Ullah, 20, of Higham Road, will set off on July 1 to intern, as part of the International Citizen Service initiative, for three months.

He will be working on the scheme’s Right to Education campaign, based at Birzeit University in the West Bank area, and living with students.

He said: “You hear so much about the Middle East on the news, but this way I will experience what it’s like on the ground for students out there.”

The aim of the project is to raise awareness of the many obstacles facing young people who are educated in an occupied territory.

Mr Ullah explained: “The kids there have huge restrictions on their movement.

“The simple walk from Tottenham to Wood Green would take me 25 minutes, whereas the Palestinian equivalent would take three hours because of the amount of checkpoints.”

Mr Ullah has managed to raise over £800 to cover his travel costs, including selling cakes at King’s College London, where he studies International Politics, and shaving his head. Once there, the British government will fund his expenses.

For Mr Ullah, this trip is the longest period he’s spent away from Tottenham.

He said: “I look back at the opportunities I had here, like the youth centres, and they are all missing now.

“This summer when I’m away, I wonder what young people are going to do with those long months.”