Gaza: After two years of war that kept them out of classrooms, Gaza's children are finally returning to the classroom, surrounded by devastation but determined to learn. "What we need now are notebooks, books, and pens. We want to get our lives back," said one young Palestinian girl, Sham Al-Abd. She now attends the Deir al-Balah Joint Elementary School run by the UN Palestine refugee agency (UNRWA).
According to EMM, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, announced that the agency is expanding its Return to Learning programme in Gaza, offering both in-person and online education. At the Deir al-Balah Joint Elementary School, signs of transformation from shelter to school are still evident. Families were seen cooking meals in the corridors, while tents still occupy the schoolyard.
When young student Shahd al-Bahisi returned to Deir al-Balah, she found the area destroyed, with many displaced people still present. Despite this, Shahd seems determined to resume her studies. Some classrooms remain without enough chairs, and their floors are covered with tarpaulins and blankets. Yet the excitement and determination are shining through.
To date, more than 62,000 students have benefited from temporary learning services through these basic educational activities since their launch on 1 August 2024, according to Inas Hamdam, UNRWA's spokesperson. Deir al-Balah School is one of those converted into a shelter, but UNRWA continues to open additional temporary learning spaces. This is being done in parallel with the provision of distance learning services to approximately 300,000 students in Gaza, with 8,000 teachers contributing to these services to the children of Gaza who have suffered the ravages of war.
Ms. Hamdam emphasised that children, wherever they may be, deserve a chance at life, dignity, and education. Despite the war's devastation, voices and laughter ring out once again in the hallways of Deir al-Balah's school.
