A generation of Palestinians have had virtually no access to education since the war in Gaza began
She's part of a generation of Palestinians from grade school through university who have had virtually no access to education in the territory since the war began in October 2023. Classes were suspended that month and schools were transformed into crowded shelters as hundreds of thousands fled their homes at the start of Israel's campaign of retaliation after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
The closure of schools has removed a key social outlet for young people as they grapple with war, hunger and displacement. For younger children, it has meant missing out on basic skills like reading and simple arithmetic. For older students, advanced subjects, graduation exams and college applications have all been put on hold.
Even if negotiations lead to another ceasefire, it's unclear when anything in Gaza will be rebuilt. Vast areas have been completely destroyed, and the U.N. children's agency estimates that nearly 90% of schools will need substantial reconstruction before they can function again.
Like many in Gaza, Qanan's family has been displaced multiple times and is now living in a tent. When an Israeli airstrike destroyed their home in early 2024, she dug through the rubble in search of her books, but 'there was nothing left.'
'My sole dream was to study medicine,' Qanan said. 'I stopped thinking about it. All my thoughts now are about how to survive.'
More than 650,000 students have had no access to education since the start of the war, according to the U.N. children's agency, UNICEF. That includes nearly 40,000 students who were unable to take university entry exams that largely determine their career prospects.
It's the first time in decades that the exams were not administered in Gaza.
Israel's bombardment and ground operations have killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced 90% of Gaza's population. School-age children in crowded shelters and tent camps are often forced to help their families find food, water and firewood. A complete Israeli blockade imposed in early March that was only slightly eased 2 ½ months later has driven the territory to the brink of famine.
Local education officials, working with UNICEF and other aid groups, set up hundreds of learning spaces to try and provide education during the war.
'We're trying to salvage what we can of the educational process, so that the next generation doesn't slip through our fingers,' said Mohamed al-Asouli, head of the education department in the southern city of Khan Yunis.
During a six-week ceasefire in January and February, some 600 learning spaces provided lessons for around 173,000 children, according to UNICEF. But since March, when Israel ended the truce with a surprise bombardment, nearly half have shut down.
'The impact goes beyond learning losses,' said Rosalia Bollen, a UNICEF spokeswoman. 'Children in Gaza have been trapped in a cycle not just of exposure to unprecedented violence, but also a cycle of fear, of toxic stress, of anxiety.'
Some have tried to continue their studies through online learning, but it's not easy in Gaza, where there has been no central electricity since the start of the war. Palestinians must use solar panels or hard-to-find generators to charge their phones, and internet is unreliable.
'The mobile phone is not always charged, and we only have one at home,' said Nesma Zouaroub, a mother of four school-age children. She said her youngest son should be in second grade but does not know how to read or write.
'The children's future is ruined,' she said.
Ola Shaban tried to continue her civil engineering studies online through her university after the campus was destroyed by Israeli forces in April 2024. She had to walk long distances to get a signal in her hometown near Khan Yunis, and she eventually gave up.
'I couldn't continue because of lack of internet, continuous displacement and the constant sense of fear,' she said. 'Two years of my life are gone.'
Israel's offensive has killed over 59,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government, does not differentiate between combatants and civilians but says over half the dead are women and children. Its figures are used by the U.N. and other international organizations as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.
Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people in the Oct. 7 attack and abducted 251. They are still holding 50 hostages, less than half believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire deals or other agreements.
Qanan's father, Ibrahim, a local journalist, said his family did everything it could to support Sarah's ambition to study medicine, only to see it go up in smoke when the war broke out.
'The war stunned us and turned our life upside down,' the father of six said. 'Our dreams and hopes were buried in the rubble of our home.'
Magdy and Hana write for the Associated Press. Magdy reported from Cairo.

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How much fissile material does Iran still have after the airstrikes, and what is Tehran's remaining centrifuge capacity to continue enriching uranium? Notably, while much of the media's attention has been on Khamenei's stores of 60 percent highly enriched uranium, we cannot overlook Iran's 20 percent and 5 percent stockpiles. Prior to the June strikes, Tehran had 606 pounds of the former and 12,150 pounds of the latter. Iran Watch ominously warns that '20 percent enriched uranium is approximately 90% of the way to weapon-grade and Iran's stockpile would be sufficient to fuel at least two implosion weapons.' Plus, if further enriched, eventually Khamenei's 5% stockpile could be used to 'fuel at least 10 implosion weapons.' Determining exactly where these stockpiles are located in Iran is job one for U.S. and Israeli intelligence. Are they buried deep inside the rubble of Isfahan, Fordo and Natanz? Or were they moved prior to the strikes? Vice President JD Vance argued in late June that their location is a moot point —that the only question is whether 'Iran enriched the uranium to weapons-grade level, and can they convert that fuel into a nuclear weapon?' But this is not the case. Yes, Iran's remaining centrifuge capacity is also key, but so too is understanding how much fissile material remains and how long it will take Teheran to retrieve it and begin enriching anew. Uranium highly enriched to 60 percent is in a gaseous state and can be stored in cylinders approximately the same size of a scuba tank. Moving or hiding some of them could have been as easy as putting them in the back of a small car or SUV. Iran is not going to give up its nuclear weapons program. Ever since the strikes, it has remained defiant toward Washington. Therefore, the Trump administration must, at a minimum, assume some or all of Iran's enriched stockpiles are either retrievable from the rubble or accessible in an unknown location. Prior to the strikes, Iran Watch reported that Fordow mountain fortress had 2,700 operating gas centrifuges used to enrich uranium. Natanz had 17,000 deep underground and an above-ground facility containing 1,700 gas centrifuges. The latter above ground facility at Natanz, according to International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi, was destroyed by Israel on June 13. The jury is still out, however, as to how many of Iran's underground gas centrifuges remain. Much of Iran's nuclear weapons program was built covertly. It is highly likely that Iran has multiple undeclared centrifuge sites. If so, Iran producing one or two Little Boy-type nukes could be achieved at a minimum — and if needed, Tehran certainly has the technological know-how to build new centrifuges. The nuclear ashes of this phoenix are very real. Mythology is not required in order for Iran to resurrect its nuclear weapons program. Russian nuclear scientists pulled from the facilities prior to the airstrikes will likely return to enable Iran. Other aspects of Iran's nuclear program were targeted as well by Israel. Certainly, Tehran's nuclear ambitions have been set back. For instance, at Isfahan, Iran's facility that converts enriched uranium gas — a key weaponization component — to metal was partially destroyed by Israel. Nonetheless, it can be easily rebuilt. As Iran Watch notes, 'only dual-use industrial equipment' is needed to rebuild this part of Iran's nuclear phoenix. Other aspects of Iran's nuclear program were targeted as well by Israel. Israel eliminated at least 14 Iranian nuclear scientists. Additional Israeli strikes hit the Kermanshah ballistic missile facility, the Khondab nuclear reactor (which could be used to produce plutonium), and critical supporting military bases and research facilities all over Iran. Yet the head of this Phoenix remains Khamenei. Absent regime change, the Islamic Republic of Iran will aggressively continue to pursue nuclear weapons. Trump did the right thing in striking Iran. Now he must help Israel finish the job and put an end to the Khamenei regime. As we argued previously, Washington cannot negotiate with evil. It must be defeated.