The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas says the international community should pressure Israel to end its genocidal campaign in Gaza which, among other things, has been depriving thousands of students of education.
In a statement released on Monday, Hamas said schoolchildren are deprived of education for a second year.
It said the denial of 630,000 students of their right to education is a "deliberate violation of all rights stipulated by international law, which leaves the international community and UN agencies responsible to put an end to these crimes."
Hamas said this crime "will not break our people’s will, or erase their identity or take away their national rights."
“The Israeli war against schools and educational workers and facilities will not succeed in erasing our children’s Palestinian identity. These crimes will only be met with more perseverance by our people.”
This week marks the back-to-school season across the region, but not for thousands of students in Gaza. Students in the occupied West Bank began their new school year on Monday, while students in the Gaza Strip face a second consecutive year without attending school.
Israeli attacks across the besieged Palestinian territory persist, with classrooms reduced to rubble or transformed into shelters for the displaced.
The Palestinian Ministry of Education reported that nearly 80% of Gaza’s schools have been damaged or destroyed. The last remaining university in the territory was demolished by Israeli forces in January.
Israel has killed more than 10,000 students in Gaza and injured 15,000 since October. 19,000 students have fled their areas, according to the ministry.
At least 400 teachers were also killed in Gaza, and 90% of school buildings damaged, the ministry said, adding that 39,000 Gaza students were unable to take their high school exams, and 58,000 children were denied their starting first grade.
According to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), four out of every five school buildings in Gaza have been directly hit or damaged.