Gaza Schoolchildren Struggling to Learn under “Israeli” Siege

Local Editor, 15-02-2010

Nearly half a million children in Gaza returned to overcrowded and dilapidated schools on 1 February, many attending in a shift system, with missing textbooks, stationery or uniforms.

Some children do not have school uniforms as the parents cannot afford buying one due to unemployment or harsh economic conditions. Some others have to borrow pens and pencils from friends because they do not have any, while others may have to stay home and not attend school at all due to harsh conditions.

"Israel's" 23-day onslaught on Gaza which ended on 18 January 2009 had "devastating consequences for the education system", according to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Some 440,000 students attend 640 schools in Gaza; 383 are government schools, 221 are run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) and 36 are private schools, according to the ministry of education and UNRWA.

The OCHA report said at least 280 schools were damaged in the conflict, including 18 that were completely destroyed.