Gaza Herald- The Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education warned on Tuesday of the serious consequences of continued Israeli attacks targeting school students and children in the Gaza Strip, after the death toll among children killed in recent attacks rose to five, following the announcement of the death of 15-year-old Majd Mohammed Fakhri Hassan.
The ministry said the Israeli occupation’s continued targeting of students in Gaza reflects the scale of the dangers surrounding children and prevents them from enjoying their rights to life, safety, and education.
The ministry stressed that the killing of five students in a series of successive incidents cannot be treated as just another statistic in the daily news. Rather, it represents a devastating human and educational loss and a violation of the rights of children who should be protected and cared for, and who should be able to continue their education without fear of gunfire or bombardment.
It noted that students face dangers while traveling to and from school, as well as in and around the places where they live and receive their education. These threats heighten concerns for their safety and place legal and humanitarian responsibilities on the international community, requiring urgent action rather than merely monitoring incidents and recording casualty figures.
The ministry renewed its call on the United Nations, UNICEF, international human rights and children’s rights experts and mechanisms, and organizations defending the right to education to move beyond monitoring and expressions of concern toward concrete, measurable legal and on-the-ground measures.
Such measures, it said, must ensure students’ protection, reduce their exposure to death and injury, and guarantee their right to reach schools and educational centers safely.
The ministry also called for attacks against students to be documented professionally and independently, for the circumstances surrounding them to be investigated, and for those responsible to be held accountable under international law.
It further urged the establishment of immediate protection measures for children, educational facilities, and education workers to prevent such incidents from recurring and bring the ongoing attacks to an end.
The ministry emphasized that protecting children is neither an optional commitment nor a temporary response dictated by events, but a legal and humanitarian responsibility.
It reaffirmed that the right to education is inseparable from the right to life, stressing that any discussion of maintaining the educational process remains incomplete unless students are provided with genuine guarantees that protect their lives and preserve their dignity.
In conclusion, the ministry stated that every student killed under these circumstances represents a future denied its opportunity, a family enduring grief that no statement can ease, and a society suffering ever-greater human and educational losses.
It renewed its appeal for urgent and effective international action that places the protection of Palestinian children at the top of the agenda and translates international commitments into tangible measures to end impunity and safeguard students’ rights to life and safe education.
