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Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, stated that the new school year, which was set to begin today across the Gaza Strip, cannot commence in any of its 200 schools, most of which are being used as shelters for displaced Palestinians.
In a statement, Dujarric said that after 11 months of hostilities, more than 600,000 students are being deprived of access to formal education for another year.
He added that children in Gaza continue to suffer the worst effects of the humanitarian crisis there, including the risk of disease outbreaks.
Dujarric noted that the UN and its partners continue their efforts to protect children against the poliovirus, with the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reporting that partners concluded the second phase of the vaccination campaign yesterday in southern Gaza.
More than 256,000 children in Khan Younis and Rafah were reached over a period of four days during the second phase of the vaccination campaign, he added.
Dujarric emphasised that the initial round of the campaign is now almost 70 percent complete – with more than 446,000 children vaccinated out of the 640,000 targeted during this first round of vaccinations – with the second round expected to start in four weeks’ time.
OCHA warned that repeated evacuation orders are deepening the humanitarian crisis for hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza. “As of today, more than 55 evacuation orders remain in effect, covering up to 86 percent of the Strip.”
In a related context, the United Nations marked the International Day to Protect Education from Attack.
In a message, the UN Secretary-General said that recent years have seen a dramatic increase in attacks on students, teachers, educational personnel and schools around the world — from Gaza, to Sudan, Myanmar, Ukraine, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and elsewhere.
He urged all countries to stand with efforts to ensure that children and young people can continue their learning — during crises and after the fighting stops.
He highlighted what the UN Refugee Agency underscored on education as a gateway that opens doors for greater access to the labour market and enables refugees to earn a living.