Palestine
A country with deep roots, living through conflict and still making things by hand
Palestine at a Glance
A Mediterranean land of ancient heritage, connecting Africa, Asia, and Europe through centuries of culture and trade.
Palestine comprises the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, located in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Gaza Strip (365 km²) sits along the Mediterranean coast between Egypt and Israel, while the West Bank (5,655 km²) lies between Israel and Jordan, with Jerusalem at the center of historic claims.
Home to one of the world's oldest artisan traditions — embroidery, olive cultivation, ceramics, and soap-making — Palestinians have sustained cultural industries for millennia. Despite rich heritage and a skilled workforce, the economy faces severe structural constraints including movement restrictions and prolonged conflict.
Priorities for Impact
There are two ways to help Palestinians through Aseel. Give, and we deliver food and essentials to families in Gaza. Or shop handmade goods, and the money goes to Palestinian artisans and women-run businesses. Organizations can partner with us to reach communities faster, with a record of where every dollar went.
Buy Good
Our goal: connect 5,000 Palestinian artisans and small businesses to buyers around the world.
Do Good
Palestine has lived through decades of conflict. The escalation that started in October 2023 is the worst humanitarian crisis Gaza has recorded.
Food Security Snapshot: Gaza
Prevalence of IPC Phase 3 or worse
Acute malnutrition was low in surveyed areas (UNICEF SMART survey, June 2026).
Source: UNICEFFood security in Gaza (April–June 2026, source: IPC)
1.2 million people, 59% of Gaza, don't have enough to eat. IPC calls this Crisis level or worse, and expects the number to rise to 1.4 million by the end of 2026 if aid slows.
Things have improved since the October 2025 ceasefire. The improvement holds only as long as aid keeps coming in.
Aseel sends food and essentials to families in Gaza through local partners we've checked ourselves.
Key Do Good Partners
How we work in Palestine
Partner vetting
Every partner is registered locally. Our team checks them and reviews them again before any money moves.
Screening
We screen partners and recipients against sanctions and counter-terrorism lists before each payment.
Delivery models
We choose the delivery model, cash, in-kind, or voucher, based on what the markets and access in each area allow.
Monitoring and reporting
Each delivery comes with proof it arrived, and donors get a report on where their money went.
Buy Good
Most Palestinian crafts are made at home, and most of the makers are women. Tatreez embroidery and Nablus soap are how many families in Gaza and the West Bank earn a living.
Women Artisan businesses and household-based production
Key value chains we're starting with
Aseel is getting ready to bring Buy Good to Palestine. We're starting with three crafts that buyers abroad already want, that women mostly make, that ship well, and that can carry on when movement is restricted.
Palestinian Embroidery (Tatreez)
Cross-stitch women have passed down for centuries. On UNESCO's heritage list since 2021.
The opportunity: buyers abroad want the real thing, and it's made at home, so work continues when movement is restricted.
The constraints: makers rarely reach buyers outside Palestine, and shipping and payments abroad are hard.
How we plan to help: list artisans on Aseel and handle listings, fair prices, payments and shipping.
Nablus Soap & Natural Products
Made in Nablus for over a thousand years, in family workshops.
The opportunity: keeps for years, ships easily, and sells abroad as a gift or wellness item.
The constraints: small family makers with no export experience and patchy access to packaging and shipping.
How we plan to help: list soap makers on Aseel and help with photos, packaging, shipping and payments.
Palestinian Ceramics
Hand-painted pottery from Hebron and Jerusalem, in patterns families have used for generations.
The opportunity: home and gift buyers abroad already look for this style, and small pieces ship well.
The constraints: sales depended on tourists, and tourism stopped after 2023. Breakage in shipping puts makers off trying.
How we plan to help: give workshops an online shop for buyers abroad, with help on listings, pricing and safe packing.
Make one of these? Or work with makers who do?
Key Buy Good Partners
