For over a year and three months, the Israeli occupation has paralysed the lives of millions of Palestinians in Gaza. Schools, once symbols of hope and learning, have been transformed into shelters for families displaced by the destruction of their homes.

Mohammed Asaliya, a young student from Al-Naqab School in Jabalia, expresses his longing for normalcy. “We just want to hear the school bell again,” he says wistfully. “I want to hear my teacher calling us to line up, recite the anthem, and race to our classrooms.” His memories are bittersweet. “This is the second year without schools. I’ve lost sixth and seventh grade. I miss hearing my mother say, ‘Come on, Mohammed, wake up; it’s almost time. The school bell is about to ring.’”

With a faint, sorrowful smile, he adds, “I never thought going to school would feel like an impossible dream. The war has stolen the best days of our lives and taken the lives of our friends.” His voice falters as he asks, “If schools reopen, who will fill the empty seats of the friends we’ve lost?”

Mohammed, like thousands of children in Gaza, has been deprived of the right to an education in a safe environment. His questions reflect the anguish of an entire generation: “Why us? Why does this happen to us and not to children anywhere else? What have we done to deserve losing our schools, our families, our homes, and our friends?”

Walking past the ruins of his school, Mohammed feels the weight of his memories. “When I see the destruction inside, my eyes fill with tears. I remember the happy days spent running and playing with my friends and the lessons from my Arabic, maths, and science teachers. It’s hard to believe how everything has changed in an instant.”

Yet, even amidst the devastation, he finds a glimmer of resilience. “The war will end one day, and we’ll go back to our schools. We’ll rebuild the classrooms that were destroyed. We’ll be the generation that values education because we’ve lived without it, through the pain and struggle of war.”

Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation has denied 788,000 students in Gaza access to their schools and universities. According to the Ministry of Education, more than 12,681 Palestinian students have been killed, and 20,311 injured during the aggression. Furthermore, 425 government schools, universities, and educational facilities—along with 65 run by UNRWA—have been bombed or damaged. Of these, 171 have sustained severe damage, and 77 have been completely destroyed.

This is the reality for Gaza’s children: a life suspended between survival and dreams of an education that now lies in ruins.