Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian students deprived of education as Israel’s war and financial strangulation continue
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian students deprived of education as Israel’s war and financial strangulation continue
RAMALLAH, September 1, 2025 | Government Communication Center – Following repeated warnings by the Palestinian Cabinet of the grave and mounting consequences of the ongoing all-out Israeli war against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the ongoing withholding of Palestinian clearance revenues**, the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education announced earlier this week that it has been decided to postpone the beginning of the 2025/2026 school year in the West Bank to Monday, September 8, 2025.
** Under signed agreements, Israel collects Palestinian clearance revenues on behalf of the Palestinian Authority and must transfer them on a monthly basis. These clearance revenues constitute more than two-thirds of the Palestinian Government’s total income, and are indispensable for sustaining essential public services, including education, healthcare, and social protection.
The decision to postpone the beginning of the school year comes against the backdrop of Israel’s unlawful withholding of over 10 billion shekels (4.5 billion AUD) of Palestinian clearance revenues, and the suspension of all transfers for the fourth consecutive month. This has rendered the Palestinian Government unable to meet its obligations toward the Palestinian people, including paying salaries to public employees to sustain national institutions and public services.
The Israeli deliberate and systematic financial strangulation against the Palestinian National Authority has crippled the ability of Palestinian institutions to sustain essential public services. The education sector has been particularly hard hit, with the postponement depriving more than 623,000 students and over 40,000 teachers across the West Bank of beginning the school year on time.
In Gaza, as Israel’s genocidal war is extending into its second consecutive year, more than 700,000 students remain deprived of their right to education, including over 70,000 high school students who have been deprived of sitting for their high school final exams—placing their academic and professional future at risk.
The forced disruption and denial of education to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children reflect the depth of the catastrophe facing the Palestinian people and the collapse of their institutions under siege and war. These deliberate actions undermine the basic human rights of children, whose education, safety, and future are being systematically jeopardized by an occupying Power that defies international law and community.
The international community has an urgent responsibility to act, ensure accountability, and take all necessary measures to protect the Palestinian people and uphold their rights in the face of ongoing war and oppression, as well as to safeguard Palestinian institutions and public services.