Like all Palestinians, students from the Gaza Strip face difficulties travelling between Gaza and the West Bank. Between March 1996 and January 1998, over 1,500 students from Gaza registered at West Bank universities were prohibited from traveling to their place of study because of the Israeli Government's arbitrary denial of travel and residence permits. Students who were already in the West Bank and chose to continue their studies did so 'illegally'. In January 1998, a handful of students were issued with short term permits, which have now expired without being renewed. Currently, hundreds of Gaza students are studying 'illegally', living under the constant threat of arrest, detention and deportation to Gaza. Many have been obliged to abandon their studies in the face of such obstacles.

Since an extended full closure was imposed on the Palestinian Occupied Territories in 1991, sealing off the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians have not been allowed to enter Israel or East Jerusalem without a permit. This means that travel between the West Bank and Gaza is restricted. Israel has never established clear regulations for the permit application process, which is excessively bureaucratic.

Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem recently described the procedures which Gaza students face trying to apply for permits as "improper and...arbitrary". Applicants for permits are not informed of the reason why they have been rejected and they are not given an opportunity to appeal. All travel permits are cancelled each time Israel imposes a full closure on the Palestinian Occupied Territories.

In both the 1993 Declaration of Principles between Israel and the PLO and the Interim Agreement of 1995, Israel agrees to guarantee freedom of movement between Gaza and the West Bank. This has not been implemented. Moreover, the right to education is a fundamental human right that must not be subject to political concerns or negotiations.

The Israeli government continues to deny and restrict Gaza students' right to education. Responding to a 10,000 signature petition organized by the Gaza students Campaign in March 1998, an Israeli official at the London embassy identified Gaza students collectively as "a dangerous group". A spokesperson for Binyamin Netanyahu told the BBC World Service News in a broadcast from 4 March 1997, that not a single Gaza student could be allowed to study in the West Bank, since the students 'meet the profile of terrorists'.

meet some Gazan students and hear what they have to say in the portraits and testimony section.

The Gaza Students Campaign is now entering its third year of lobbying for academic freedom for Gaza students. The 1998 campaign was launched on 17 August and will culminate with Gaza Students Action Day on 19 November, an international day of action to raise awareness of the situation faced by Gaza students and to lobby the Israeli government to bring about a solution. The Gaza students problem is solvable in a "win-win" manner. It is possible to respect the right of students to education while fulfilling the perceived security needs of Israel.

Gaza Students Action Day is an international day of action in support of Gaza students' right to education. The Gaza Students Campaign, a student-based international volunteer organization, coordinates action internationally from its base at the Human Rights Action Project of Birzeit University, Palestine, and puts new campaigners in touch with local networks.

We currently have volunteer networks in 23 countries. The Campaign's web-site will be a major campaign resource and will be regularily updated with campaign news from around the world.

• Contact the International Coordinator for information on how to take part in Gaza Students Action Day.
• Participate in national and international activities, including a petition drive, information distribution, fax-a-thons, public meetings, and other awareness raising programs.
• Join the campaign e-mail list for updates on the campaign by sending an e-mail to gsc@admin.birzeit.edu with 'subscribe' in the message body.
• Send an online letter to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu protesting the criminalization of education for Gaza students.
• Write to your own national representative calling for the right to education to be upheld for Gaza students. (List of Isreali embassies around the world).
• Start a petition at your university or in your community - for more details, check out the action page.

We currently have a volunteer network in the UK, USA, Netherlands, France, Germany, Israel, Pakistan, Palestine, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Denmark and Belgium. A number of local and international organizations currently support the Gaza Students Campaign. If you or your organization would like to be named as an official sponsor of the campaign for academic freedom, please contact the international coordinator of the Gaza Students Campaign at gsc@admin.birzeit.edu Your support can make a difference to hundreds of Gazan students who are denied their right to education and freedom of movement every day.