In the midst of the ongoing genocide committed by the occupying entity in Gaza and Lebanon, classrooms are submerged in the silence of death and destruction. The remains of schools and universities, once sanctuaries for knowledge and learning, now stand as witnesses to those who create devastation and destruction. The number of martyrs among students and teachers continues to rise, making the dream of education and the struggle for a better tomorrow out of their reach.

The Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education announced in a statement: “The number of students who have been martyred in Gaza since the beginning of the aggression has reached more than 11,292, with 17,965 injured, while 114 students were martyred in the West Bank and 591 others injured, in addition to the arrest of 439.”

The Ministry also reported that 550 teachers and administrators were martyred, with 3,717 injured in Gaza and the West Bank, and more than 145 were arrested in the West Bank.

Furthermore, 362 government schools, universities, and their affiliated buildings, along with 65 others belonging to the UNRWA, were bombed and destroyed in Gaza. This led to 124 schools suffering severe damage, 62 completely destroyed, and 84 schools and 7 universities in the West Bank were subjected to incursions and vandalism. Additionally, 133 government schools in Gaza were used as shelters, but these too were not spared from Zionist targeting.

The Ministry confirmed that 718,000 students in Gaza are still deprived of access to their schools and universities since the beginning of the aggression, with many students suffering from psychological trauma and facing difficult health conditions.

In Lebanon, the scene mirrors that of Gaza, where the academic year has come to a halt, and most schools and universities have been converted into shelters for the displaced. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education, “about 620 shelter locations have been approved, including 505 public schools, 54 official vocational schools, as well as several buildings belonging to the Lebanese University and 50 private schools.”

What is happening today is not only the destruction of educational infrastructure, but the aborting of the future of generations. This educational genocide is not limited to the destruction of facilities but has also targeted the future of thousands of students, at a time when the world, more than ever, needs to build bridges, not destroy them