After spending much of the past three years in a tent, 12-year-old Osama Abu Al-Subh walked into a school in western Gaza City on Saturday, the first time since Oct. 7, 2023.
For Osama, the most important part was simply being back with his classmates.
For Gaza, face-to-face education, one of the major aspects of normal life, is returning to the strip among the destruction.
Three schools reopened Saturday: a facility run by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in central Gaza’s al-Nuseirat camp and two government schools in western and eastern Gaza City. Other students returned to temporary learning sites across the strip.
About 541,000 students in Gaza are benefiting from educational programs, including around 100,000 enrolled in UNRWA schools, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education.
The ministry offers two tracks: in-person classes for students able to reach schools or designated sites, and virtual learning for those unable to access physical centers.
It plans to gradually expand in-person education through about 700 educational sites across the strip, in addition to 25 temporary schools expected to be delivered soon.
13-year-old Suad Al-Kafarna, originally from Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, now lives with her family in a displacement camp in al-Nuseirat.
“I hoped the new academic year would represent a restart for education and allow students to study in stable schools rather than repeatedly moving between displacement sites and makeshift learning centers,” Suad said.
11-year-old Fuad al-Jarousha was a little disappointed for not being able to attend a proper school like some of his peers.
Due to his family’s location and circumstances, Fuad can only attend classes at a temporary learning site near his displacement camp.
His father was killed in an earlier airstrike, leaving Fuad, the eldest of his siblings, with additional responsibilities despite his young age.
“We have to sit on the ground inside tents because of a shortage of chairs and other basic resources,” he said, adding that high temperatures make it difficult for them to concentrate.
Still, Fuad keeps attending lessons, hoping to complete his education despite his family’s situation.
Gaza-based psychologist Rawan Ahmed told Xinhua that returning to in-person classes could benefit children who have been exposed to years of displacement, disruption, and uncertainty.
“Returning to a classroom allows children to rebuild a sense of routine and stability after years in which their daily lives were repeatedly disrupted,” Ahmed said.
“Being physically present with teachers and classmates also gives them opportunities to interact, communicate and feel that they are part of a community again,” she added.
The ministry is seeking to expand in-person learning while maintaining virtual education for students who cannot access schools, but the scale of the challenge remains immense.
According to figures from the Hamas-run Government Media Office in Gaza, more than 620,000 students have been deprived of regular schooling, while over 20,000 students have been killed since the outbreak of the war.
The number of school days decreased from 200 days during the 2022-2023 academic year to only 60 days during 2025-2026, while the number of weekly educational sessions decreased from 30 to 12.
The education system also faces shortages of functioning schools, classrooms, furniture, and other basic resources.
Despite the difficult conditions, the education ministry said more students enrolled in the new school year than in the previous one, showing families’ commitment to keeping their children engaged in education despite the devastating circumstances.
“I want to study normally again and stay with my classmates,” Osama told Xinhua, hoping classes would continue steadily so he could catch up on lost learning. ■
