DUBAI // A charity dinner raised about Dh3 million that will go to help Palestinian students in Lebanon.
The donations were given either in the form of cash or as scholarships awarded by individual businessmen.
The revenue raised from tickets to the dinner, which took place on Friday evening at Atlantis, the Palm, also contributed to the fund.
"The aim of this event is to introduce the Palestinian community in the UAE to the work of the fund and, as a first move, it has been very successful," said Redwan Qasem, the Palestinian consul general in Dubai.
Most of the donors were Palestinian businessmen in the UAE.
The event is the first charity drive in the UAE for the fund, which was established by Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, in August 2010.
The fund aims to help Palestinians in Lebanon who are living in extreme poverty and harsh conditions.
Since it was established, it has raised about Dh44m, and has provided university education for 1,460 students in Lebanon.
A United Nations survey in 2010 found that about half the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are under 25, and of those aged 16-18 only half are enrolled in schools or vocational training centres.
