Curfew Lifted in Hawwara, Resumed in Hebron
Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to inform you that the curfew on the Palestinian village of Hawwara, near Nablus, was lifted yesterday (12th November), after being imposed by the Israeli army for the past 45 days. The four government schools in Hawwara, serving 1558 pupils, have resumed their work. Moreover, pupils who live in Hawwara who attend schools in the city of Nablus managed to go to their schools.
The curfew on the city of Hebron, imposed by the Iareli for the past 45 days, was lifted for three hours yesterday. Around 50% of the 12,000 pupils in the 28 schools in the city of Hebron went to school yesterday. The rest did not go. The parents were afraid to send them to schools because of the heavy Israeli military presence near their houses or in the streets or because of their fear of Israeli settlers in the city. In fact, the Israeli soldiers threw tear gas canisters into one of the schools (Mohammadieh Basic School for Boys). Eight students lost consciousness because of inhaling gas and had to be lightly treated.
Today (13th November), the curfew was resumed on the city of Hebron. Furthermore, four schools in the city are still used as Israeli army posts.
In the coming days, I will write to you about the attempts of parents and the community in the city of Hebron to keep the process of learning going on under the present difficult circumstances.
Khalil Mahshi
Director General
International and Public Relations
Ministry of Education
Ramallah, West Bank
Palestine