Hungry Students in Gaza Scrap Ambitious Futures for Brutal Scuffle to Acquire Essentials
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The educational landscape in Gaza is facing a dire situation, with hundreds of schools damaged or destroyed since October 2023 due to repeated Israeli attacks. This has significantly disrupted education access for Palestinian children, creating a potential "lost generation" due to interruptions in schooling and psychosocial trauma.
Many schools in Gaza serve as shelters for displaced civilians, making them vulnerable and unsafe for students. Repeated targeting of these schools has led to casualties and further compounded the crisis.
UNRWA schools, which provide critical educational and psychosocial support to Palestinian students, have been hit multiple times, impacting their ability to serve children like Maha Ali and Yasmine al-Za'aneen. Funding cuts to organizations like UNRWA further imperil the continuation of schooling and emergency education services, which are essential for supporting vulnerable children in Gaza.
The ongoing violence and destruction have forced students like Maha Ali and Yasmine to face profound challenges, including school closures, loss of safe learning spaces, and trauma from displacement and attacks. These conditions compromise not only their immediate education but also their future opportunities, risking long-term socio-economic impacts on their generation.
Israeli restrictions continue to limit the entry of educational supplies into Gaza, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. As a result, students like Saja Adwan, an honors student at Gaza's Azhar Institute, have lost their books and study materials during bombings. Saja now lives in a school-turned-shelter with her family of nine.
The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that 97% of educational facilities in Gaza have sustained some level of damage. Maha Ali, a 26-year-old honors student, now lives in the crumbling remains of the Islamic University, which was once a vibrant hub of learning. The Islamic University, like most educational institutions across Gaza, is now a crowded shelter for the displaced.
Israel has accused Hamas and other groups of embedding themselves in civilian areas and structures, including schools. However, Palestinian Education Minister Amjad Barham accused Israel of carrying out a systematic destruction of schools and universities, with 293 out of 307 schools being destroyed completely or partially.
Mediators have failed to secure a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, and there is no immediate hope for relief and a return to the classroom for Gazan students. The situation threatens to cause a lost generation without urgent protection and restoration of safe, sustained educational access.
Humanitarian actors emphasize the urgent need to protect education and prosecute attacks on schools to safeguard Palestinian children's right to education and a hopeful future. Israel has yet to comment on the destruction of schools and universities in Gaza.
- The disruption in education due to war-and-conflicts, such as the repeated Israeli attacks in Gaza, has created a potential "lost generation" of Palestinian children, affecting their future opportunities and posing long-term socio-economic impacts on their generation.
- Car-accidents and travel-related incidents might pose lesser threats to the safety of the Palestinian children compared to the ongoing conflicts and destruction in Gaza.
- General-news outlets, politics, and crime-and-justice stories might get overshadowed by the dire situation of the educational landscape in Gaza, overshadowing other important issues regarding the world.
- Health services in Gaza are already strained due to repeated Israeli attacks, but the structural damage to schools and universities, serving as shelters for displaced civilians, adds to the existing health concerns and creates a dangerous environment for everyone.
- The world community must prioritize the protection of education facilities, including schools and universities, in conflict zones like Gaza, to prevent further interruptions in the lives and education of children and uphold the right to education for all.
