Attachments
The catastrophic damages to the education system in Gaza!
The ongoing conflict in Gaza has deprived all children in Gaza from accessing education for one full year. Recent hostilities have tragically led to a surge in attacks on schools, exacerbating the dire humanitarian crisis. This have a severe negative affect on psychosocial well-being of students, teachers and caregivers.
Since October 7th, the Education Cluster “EC” has been monitoring and reporting on damages to schools through initial reports from Cluster partners in the field, UNOCHA, and UNRWA. In addition, the EC has activated the Education Cluster Assessment Team (ECAT) that has been deployed to verify damages on each occasion the situation allowed.
Objective
Due to the increased access limitation to the field across the Gaza Strip, and the intense Israeli bombardment from air, land, and sea across much of the Gaza Strip, in addition to recurrent telecommunication shutdowns, the Cluster administered a Satellite-derived Damage Assessment to:
• To update the results of the previous report on school damages based on proximity to damaged sites including new trends and severity of damages.
• To better understand the situation of school buildings and the severity of damage, especially in areas with limited field access.
• To help in updating the Flash Appeal as part of the Cluster Response Plan and allocate resources where they are most needed, ensuring a swift and effective recovery process.
• Communicate the impact of the ongoing hostilities on school facilities to the public, including humanitarian actors. This information helps raise awareness about the severity of the situation and can facilitate evidence-based engagement in recovery efforts.
The Education Cluster published the first update of the “Verification of damages to schools based on proximity to damaged sites” on the 10th of February, the second update on the 26th of March, the third update on the 25th of April, the fourth update on the 3rd June, and the fifth update on the 28th July.