‘All Palestinian children have the right to go to school and to learn in a secure and dignified environment... Palestine Refugee children must be protected and must feel confident in their future. All refugees must be able to access UNRWA services without fear.’
Imagine you are a young student in a school in a town near Bethlehem. You are perhaps between the ages of six and 14. On a bright, warm afternoon, you leave school to walk home with your friends. The next minute, a military jeep arrives at speed and throws sound bombs and tear gas onto the road near where you are walking. Another soon joins that jeep, and they continue to throw sound bombs and tear gas where students are walking. You and your friends scatter in all directions, some onto a busy road that joins your town to a major intercity road.
Unfortunately for many pupils in the West Bank this type of event is not unusual, and such occurrences have increased since the violent escalations in Gaza began on 7 October 2023.
‘Palestinian children in the West Bank and Gaza faced severe limitations on education far before Oct. 7. According to the West Bank Protection Consortium, in 2023, nearly 6,000 children in 117 West Bank communities were left out of primary school and almost 5,000 children had difficulty accessing daily education due to movement restrictions, security checks, and harassment, intimidation, and violence on their way to school.’
*Samir from the Palestinian Ministry of Education informed us that since 7 October, life is very different for the students and teachers in the West Bank and particularly those in Area C, which makes up around two-thirds of the West Bank and is under full Israeli military control. He told us that in the school we visited that day, many students are now very afraid, and some experience physical symptoms of anxiety such as stomach pains. In addition, he says many are struggling to focus on their studies, not just because of what might happen on the way to or from school, but because of the fear of Israeli military night raids in their towns or villages, which are also frequent.
Although to date soldiers haven’t entered the classroom;
‘that doesn’t mean they mightn’t in the future’… we have not experienced violence like this [focussed on schools and school children] before the war.’
The school has had to become very flexible in terms of the structure of the day because they never know when there will be an incident or raid at the school;
‘It is just not possible to say today everything will be fine… when they come, we ask why, but even if the soldiers don’t come, we worry why not…what are they planning?’
Since October 2023, we’re told that the attitude of the soldiers has become more violent;
‘I think honestly that they are ready to kill.’
According to World Vision, since 7 October 2023;
‘Children in the West Bank face a grim reality. Schools frequently close, and the constant threat of violence looms over daily life. Checkpoints have multiplied, and economic hardship has deepened, confining many children to their homes, isolating them from friends, education, and normal routines. The resulting stress, anxiety, and trauma present long- term risks to their mental health and development.‘
The school has introduced various stress release activities to help students cope, for example, sessions in relaxation and breathing techniques, as well as singing and other activities. Teaching staff have undergone training by a specialist mental health organisation. The impact on students’ physical health from issues like teargas exposure is also a major worry.
Some student’s educational attainment is being impacted, which Samir believes is the result of the violence and harassment they experience accessing school. The Ministry of Education is currently running a UNICEF programme for headteachers, teachers and parents to train them in the ability to help students deal with violence.
In addition, teachers themselves can have difficulty getting to school because of incidents in their own villages/residential areas or because of roadblocks and ‘flying’ (pop-up) military checkpoints which permanently control, restrict or monitor movement of Palestinians in the West Bank.
The Israeli government law to ban UNRWA, the Palestinian Refugee Agency, will come into effect on Thursday 30 January. The UN has described the legislation as having a devastating impact on its operations and management of many disaster-relief, humanitarian and social services, including schools. UNWRA operates 96 schools across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, with some 45,000 refugee students enrolled. For staff and students at these schools this brings yet more insecurity to an already fragile situation.
Since the Israel-Hamas ceasefire which came into effect on 19 January things have become even more uncertain in the West Bank. In the immediate aftermath, more gates have been installed by the military on the roads nearby the school that link the town to Bethlehem in one direction and nearby towns in the other. If these gates are closed by the Israeli military then access to the school by both children and staff will be impacted. There are now over 100 new Israeli military gates in the Bethlehem area alone. According to Samir;
‘now Gaza is peaceful they want to turn us into a prison.‘
Staff are now preparing to offer lessons online, but as Samir explains;
‘families tend to be large, with 5 children or more, they don’t have enough phones or computers for all the children, Wi-Fi is weak, and electricity supply erratic. We don’t know what will happen next, and we are worried.‘
Take action!
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Israel has passed a law that will make it extremely difficult for the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA to deliver humanitarian, medical aid, and other essential services, including schools across the West Bank, at a time of immense need. Please sign and share our urgent action to protect UNRWA. In the UK? Sign here. In Ireland? Sign here.
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What is life really like in the occupied West Bank? As Israel’s military campaign intensifies across the West Bank, please take some time to educate yourself and your loved ones about life under occupation. This new film by Palestinian and Israeli activists, Basel Adra and Yuval Abraham has been nominated for a BAFTA award: No Other Land.
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Israel’s military campaign is having catastrophic consequences for people across Gaza and the West Bank and the pressures on UNRWA can only worsen this. Donate to the Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) humanitarian appeal here. Can’t donate? Can you share with your friends and family?
What does international law say?