The devastation of Palestine’s education system has reached unprecedented levels, with more than 18,000 students killed since October 2023 alongside nearly 1,000 teachers and staff. Figures released by the Ministry of Education reveal the staggering toll of the ongoing war on Gaza and the West Bank, where children, schools and universities have been systematically targeted.

In Gaza alone, over 18,000 students have lost their lives and nearly 28,000 others have been injured. The West Bank has also suffered, with more than 140 students killed, close to a thousand injured, and hundreds arrested. Teachers and administrative staff have not been spared: almost 1,000 have been killed and over 4,500 wounded, while hundreds of educators in the West Bank remain in detention.

The destruction of infrastructure has left entire communities without access to learning. More than 160 public schools and 63 university buildings in Gaza have been destroyed, while nearly 200 UNRWA and public schools have been damaged or targeted. At least 25 schools have been erased completely from the educational register, along with their students and teachers. In the West Bank, over 150 schools have been destroyed and universities repeatedly raided, forcing higher education institutions to resort to remote teaching under constant threat.

The Ministry of Education has warned that the consequences will be catastrophic for generations to come, stressing that the deliberate destruction of schools and universities tears at the very fabric of Palestine’s future. With children denied classrooms, books and safety, the right to education is being buried beneath rubble, leaving a lasting scar on a generation already marked by loss.