25 April 2025
Young Palestinians are the best educated cohort in the whole of the Arab world, a fact that has long disturbed Israeli officials. It is therefore not surprising that Israel has gone out of its way to destroy the whole infrastructure of education in Gaza At least one-third of Gaza’s population are children – even now, after Israel’s mass murder of children since 7 October 2023 – and as this report from Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, Israel’s scholasticide brings heartbreak to the children directly affected.
Scholasticide Continues: Israel’s Ongoing Destruction of Gaza’s Education System Jeopardizes an Entire Generation’s Future
- 22 April 2025
- https://www.mezan.org/en/post/46690
Gaza, 22 April 2025 – Amid the failure of the international community to stop Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Israeli forces and authorities continue to perpetrate a scholasticide—i.e., the wholesale, deliberate, and systematic destruction of the Palestinian education system.
Israeli military attacks have continued to target educational infrastructure—including schools, universities, and libraries—and to kill and injure thousands of teachers, students, and scholars, and to displace hundreds of thousands more. Over a year and a half of Israel’s relentless military attacks and man-made humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza have created an environment where sustaining the educational process has become nearly impossible. This has disrupted students’ access to learning for two consecutive academic years, with another one at risk. These actions are part of a broader attempt to erase Gaza’s cultural and intellectual heritage and stifle its development.
According to an assessment published by the Global Education Cluster on 1 April 2025, 95.2% of schools in Gaza have sustained varying degrees of damage, and 88.5% of school buildings require complete reconstruction or major rehabilitation. A total of 241 public schools have suffered severe damage, while 111 have been completely destroyed. Additionally, 91 public schools and 89 UNRWA schools have been directly bombed or vandalized.
In addition to the attacks targeting public, UNRWA, and private educational institutions across Gaza, there is a clear link between the forced displacement of civilians and the destruction of schools. The first displacement order, which targeted the northern Gaza governorates, led to the mass relocation of residents to the southern governorates. Following this, Israeli forces deliberately destroyed the schools from which civilians had evacuated. In the North Gaza Governorate, the destruction rate reached 100%, with all school buildings either directly hit or damaged. In the Gaza Governorate, which includes Gaza City, 92.8% of school buildings were affected. In the Rafah Governorate, 91% of school buildings were either directly hit or damaged. Moreover, many schools have been repurposed for military use, such as army bases and detention centers.
Due to this systematic destruction, ongoing bombardments, repeated forced displacements, power and internet outages, and the burdens placed on students to help their families secure food, water, and firewood for cooking, over 720,000 Palestinian students have experienced a complete interruption in their education during the genocide.[1] According to the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, between 7 October 2023 and 15 April 2025, 13,419 students were killed and 21,653 were injured. Among educational staff, 651 teachers have been killed and 2,791 injured. While the number of students and staff detained remains unknown, it is estimated to be in the hundreds.
On 18 March 2025, the Israeli military resumed its large-scale military offensive on Gaza following a ceasefire that had lasted for nearly two months. Despite the ceasefire, attacks on civilians, particularly in Rafah Governorate, had continued in practice. With the renewed attacks, Israel reverted to its policy of mass killing, destruction, and displacement, effectively crushing recent efforts to revive education that had seen partial restoration during the ceasefire.
The Ministry of Education had announced its full readiness to conduct the 2024 General Secondary Education Certificate Examination (locally known as tawjihi) electronically and at designated centers, in coordination with partners and Palestinian telecommunications authorities. Preparations included providing necessary furniture and enhancing the communications network. The exams were scheduled to begin on 13 April 2025 as part of an exceptional session. However, due to the ongoing genocide and the worsening security conditions, the Ministry decided to postpone the session for the second time until further notice, placing yet another academic year in jeopardy.
In Palestine, obtaining the General Secondary Education Certificate marks the culmination of 12 years of education—covering primary, preparatory, and secondary levels—and serves as the gateway to enrollment in both local and international universities. Marah Shabana, a high school student from Gaza, expressed her despair following the Ministry’s second postponement of the exam:
“Fear has taken hold of our hearts as we face the possibility of losing this crucial stage in our lives, along with our dreams and ambitions. I’ve lost the motivation and strength to carry on or try again, and it has taken a toll on my mental well-being.”
Education in Gaza has come to a near-complete halt over the past 18 months. Approximately 62% of the damaged educational institutions in Gaza have been repurposed as shelters for displaced people, depriving students of a safe and appropriate learning environment. Hundreds of thousands of students, teachers, administrative staff, and technicians are now enduring harsh living, health, and humanitarian conditions. These compounded hardships, along with the trauma of losing one or both parents or other family members, have taken a profound psychological toll on students, further diminishing their ability to pursue education even when limited opportunities arise.
Despite these immense challenges and the harsh conditions imposed by Israeli forces, some local and international initiatives have emerged to provide alternative education through online platforms, virtual classrooms, and pre-recorded audio and video lessons. However, their impact remains limited due to frequent power and internet outages and the lack of access to electronic devices for most students.
Bisan Al-Surdi, director of Bisan Educational Tent in Al-Nuseirat, told Al-Mezan:
“We launched a personal initiative, approved by the Ministry of Education, as an alternative to online learning for students who are able to attend in person. It’s a makeshift educational tent that accommodates 150 students, divided into three shifts, each lasting two hours daily, for grades one through five. The staff are all volunteers. We face many challenges, as most students need psychological support due to war-related trauma, injury, or the loss of family members. Classes are often disrupted because of deteriorating security conditions or displacement orders. One time, stones fell on the children during a bombing, causing panic among the students and their families.”
The growing impact of malnutrition among children and students in Gaza—driven by the Israeli-imposed blockade and its deliberate policy of starvation and denial of humanitarian aid—has become a key factor undermining academic performance. The deteriorating humanitarian conditions and widespread food insecurity have led to a sharp rise in malnutrition rates, impairing students’ physical and cognitive development and significantly diminishing their ability to concentrate and engage in learning.
Sham Ammar, a second-year secondary school student who studied electronically with the Ministry of Education, shared the following:
“In Gaza, we face numerous challenges that hinder our education, such as the absence of schools and teachers, along with frequent power outages. During the day, I study using sunlight, and at night, I rely on my phone’s flashlight. I also have to travel long distances to find places with internet access to download educational videos from YouTube. The constant psychological pressure from the ongoing bombings affects me deeply, especially since I lost part of my family. Furthermore, the lack of proper nutrition, like vitamins, vegetables, and fruits, makes it hard for me to focus and continue my studies.”
Al Mezan strongly condemns the ongoing and deliberate Israeli attacks on educational institutions in Gaza, emphasizing that these actions are a fundamental aspect of the ongoing genocide, intended to erase the educational and cultural independence of the Palestinian people and to obliterate their potential for growth and development.
Accordingly, Al Mezan calls on the international community to take urgent and effective action to end the ongoing Israeli genocide, lift the blockade on Gaza, and compel Israel to comply with international law by halting attacks on educational institutions, refraining from targeting students and teachers, and ending practices that obstruct education or hinder the development of the education sector. Al Mezan also calls for accountability for Israeli leaders, soldiers, and all those who have ordered, carried out, or encouraged crimes against the Palestinian people.
Al Mezan further urges the international community, United Nations bodies, and international donors to intensify efforts to rehabilitate destroyed schools and universities, support the continuation of the educational process, address learning losses, and provide comprehensive psychological and social rehabilitation for students through specialized support programs.
[1] Statement by Dr. Amjad Barham, Palestinian Minister of Education, during the Seventh Biennial Conference of the Education International (EI) Arab Cross-Regional Structure (ACCRS), held on 8 April 2025.
