"UNICEF": School materials enter Gaza for the first time after a ban of more than two years

SadaNews - The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) stated today, Tuesday, that for the first time in two and a half years, it has managed to bring educational and school supplies into Gaza after Israeli authorities had previously barred them.

The organization mentioned that thousands of items, including pencils, notebooks, and wooden blocks meant for play, have now entered the region.

James Elder, spokesperson for UNICEF, said: "In recent days, we have brought in thousands of recreational items and hundreds of boxes of school supplies. We are looking to introduce another 2,500 school kits next week, pending approval."

The Israeli government's Coordinator of Activities in the Territories, the military unit overseeing the entry of aid into Gaza, has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Elder noted that children in Gaza have suffered due to an unprecedented attack on the educational system in addition to restrictions on the entry of some aid materials, including school books and pencils, which has forced teachers to rely on limited resources while children attempt to study at night in tents without lighting.

During the war, some children were unable to receive even the minimum level of education as they were facing vital challenges such as finding water, in addition to the widespread malnutrition amid a suffocating humanitarian crisis.

Elder stated: "It has been a long two years for the children and for organizations like UNICEF, witnessing attempts to provide education without those materials. We are finally seeing a genuine change, it seems."

UNICEF is working to reinforce its efforts to provide educational support to half of the school-aged children, approximately 336,000 children. Elder said that education will primarily continue in tents due to the extensive damage inflicted on school buildings in the region during the war that ignited following an attack led by Hamas on Israel in October 2023.

The latest assessment conducted by the United Nations based on satellite imagery in July indicates that at least 97 percent of schools have sustained damage.

Israel has accused Hamas and other armed factions of systematically infiltrating among civilian areas and facilities, including schools, along with using civilians as human shields.

Elder indicated that the largest number of educational facilities supported by UNICEF will be in the central and southern areas of the region, as it remains difficult to operate in the north, where large areas have been significantly destroyed in recent months of the war.

Israeli statistics indicate that the attack led by Hamas in October 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people. Meanwhile, health authorities in Gaza say that Israeli attacks on the region have claimed the lives of 71,000 Palestinians. UNICEF reported official data stating that more than 20,000 children have been killed, including 110 children since the ceasefire on October 10 of last year.